Many Democrats are guilty of pandering to populism. Rather than sticking to the facts and communicating the truth, Democratic candidates are avoiding contentious issues to save their political skins.Although it is clear that Republicans are global warming deniers, the Democrats must also shoulder blame for the failure of Congress to secure climate and energy legislation in President Obama's first term.
Taking their cues from polls, Democrats ignored the environment during the 2010 midterms. They failed to communicate the urgency of climate change and the importance of being a competitive player in the burgeoning green economy. This kind of political cowardice undermines efforts to engage the struggle against climate change and puts American global comptitiveness at risk.
In 2009, the House of Representatives passed the American Clean Energy and Security Act, also known as the Waxman-Markey energy and climate bill. With increasingly numbers of Americans succumbing to misinformation, Democrats who resisted the bill could be mistaken for a shrewd strategists intent on self preservation.
However, many House Democrats who voted against the bill, lost their bids for re-election. Two dozen House Democrats who voted for the energy and climate bill were voted out of office in the 2010 midterms, along with 19 who opposed the bill.
With the electorate so woefully confused on climate change, America needs leaders that will aggresively engage misfinformation. By following public opinion on climate change rather than leading the discussion, Democrats are reifying the Republican's lies.
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