Obama has spent months prodding other countries to make ambitious carbon-cutting pledges to the agreement, which would last long beyond the end of his presidency in early 2017.
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He said negotiators should insist upon “a single transparency mechanism that all countries are adhering to”. But he says to hold each other accountable, it’s critical that “periodic reviews” be legally binding. “Obviously, I’m not under any illusion that this Congress will impose something like that”, Obama said in Paris. “I’m confident in the wisdom of the America people on that front”.
The House vote fell in the middle of the Paris talks this week, in an attempt to cast doubt on the U.S.’s commitment to its own domestic proposals that are so key to the agreement.
“One of the things you find is when you’re in this job”, he said, is that “you think about it differently than when you’re just running for the job”. “Everybody else is taking climate change really seriously”.
Rep. Frank Pallone, D-N.J., said it was regrettable that Republicans were trying to block the power-plant rules even as officials from more than 190 almost countries and numerous world’s largest private companies gathered in Paris to work out details of a global agreement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
And, Obama said, one way of tackling climate change would be to put a price on carbon.
Pacific Island nations were out in force on Tuesday pushing for additional funding for what’s known as “loss and damage” caused by climate change.
On the other hand, House Republican Whip Steve Scalise argued that the president’s focus on the issue was misplaced.
“I watched much of his press conference, and his passion comes when he’s talking about climate change”, Carly Fiorina said of Obama on a conservative radio show. “He actually is somewhat naïve, if you want to know the truth, beyond the incompetent part”.
The president has been in Paris since Sunday, the night before the talks officially began. Presidents, prime ministers and princes urged the delegates to build a better planet for future generations, hoping to avoid a repeat of the embarrassing collapse of a similar effort in Copenhagen in 2009 to reach a global climate accord.
“I’m optimistic”, he said.
The billionaire business magnate says the threat of terror and attacks on the United States are far more concerning. “Great nations can handle a lot at once”.
Envoys at the Paris climate conference say governments and companies need to do more to protect forests, which can help slow global warming.
While some are still skeptical, evidence supporting the reality of climate change is mounting.
Rep. John Ratcliffe, R-Texas, said the Clean Power Plan was another example of the Obama administration not caring about “everyday Americans” and instead focusing on its climate change agenda.
Obama predicted the inevitable ups and downs of the climate talks.
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People in both the US and China don’t think climate change is that serious a problem, at least as it relates to the rest of the world.
