On Climate, Governors Enter 'Trench Warfare Mode'

[Brenda]

On April 8, President Donald Trump signed a sweeping executive order that seemingly put all state and local climate policies in the crosshairs. Titled “Protecting American Energy from State Overreach,” the order directs the U.S. attorney general to identify all state laws, policies, regulations and actions that burden fossil fuel development or otherwise address climate change; greenhouse gas emissions; environmental, social and governance initiatives; or environmental justice, and to “expeditiously take all appropriate action” to stop them. Although the order identifies a number of state programs — California’s cap-and-trade program, “polluter pays” climate superfund laws passed by Vermont and New York — the language is broad enough to implicate virtually any state climate or environmental policies that might hinder the administration’s “energy dominance” agenda.

Now, the attorney general has started to implement Trump’s command by taking legal action directly against states. On May 1, the Department of Justice announced it had filed lawsuits against Hawaii, Michigan, New York and Vermont over their efforts to hold fossil fuel polluters liable for climate damages. The lawsuits against Hawaii and Michigan were preemptive strikes, as these states had not yet sued any energy companies at the time of the Trump administration’s filings. Hawaii, however, did announce a climate deception lawsuit against major oil companies and the American Petroleum Institute later Thursday. In its announcement, Hawaii Attorney General Anne Lopez condemned the Trump administration’s “illegal attempt to interfere” with its lawsuit. “The state of Hawaiʻi will not be deterred from moving forward with our climate deception lawsuit,” Lopez said. “My department will vigorously oppose this gross federal overreach.”

Folks, we are in a god damned WAR. These maga psychos are attacking all US citizens and all United States states UNLESS they swear some secret fuckin oath to King Chump.



https://www.truthdig.com/articles/on-climate-governors-enter-trench-warfare-mode/