Weekly Briefing: New Republican Plan Shows Climate As An Election Issue

June 8, 2022

This past Friday, House Republicans released a high-level plan indicating how their party would address climate and energy issues if they win power in the midterms this fall. This plan highlights six main areas in which House Republicans plan to introduce policy, in addition to the names of four energy bills they already support. The climate plan is the product of a task force created by House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy last year.

“We weren’t expecting to see something from the task force yet,” said Danny Richter, CCL’s VP of Government Affairs. “This is a good indicator that the party sees climate and energy as issues that are highly relevant to the midterm elections.”

Danny added, “This is a step toward a democracy where we can pass climate priorities regardless of who’s in power,” which is critical to fully addressing climate change.

Read Our Statement

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In other news this week: 

     •  Virtual registration for CCL’s June conference: Our annual conference starts this weekend, and you can follow along from home! Register here for the virtual sessions, speakers, and live chats, hosted by Brett Cease on Zoom.

     •   June 2022 lobby trainings with Danny Richter: Prepare for June lobby meetings with this recap of Dr. Danny Richter’s trainings covering Congress, our primary and supporting asks, and more.

     •   Carbon fee and dividend vs. carbon tax: As the carbon pricing discussion has picked up speed, politicians, media, and the public sometimes interchange the words “carbon fee and dividend” with “carbon tax.” Read this blog to learn more about the difference.

     •   Economists support the fight for a carbon fee and dividend in Hawaii: Since 2019, a drive to enact a statewide carbon fee and dividend has played out in Hawaii. CCL volunteers have been at the forefront. Read more.

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Take action this week  

If you have a little time: Like and share this tweet from Senator Whitehouse

Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) tweeted on Sunday about the possibility of achieving a climate package through reconciliation. You can read that tweet here. You can also see Sen. Whitehouse at CCL’s June conference, so be sure to register virtually if you don’t plan on attending in person! 

If you have more time: Join the June national call

Join our online June national meeting this Saturday, June 11 and hear from former FERC Chairman Neil Chatterjee. He will discuss his climate story, why he supports carbon pricing, and how we can prepare the grid for the transition to clean energy. Will you join us this Saturday?

Find your CCL chapter | Check out our Action Teams | Browse upcoming events

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Featured Lever This Week 

Minnesota CCLers publish LTEs in every county

Several months ago, we featured CCL Minnesota volunteers Pat Fettes and Katya Gordon in a Weekly Briefing. The two shared details about their letter to the editor project and explained that they had a goal to publish a letter to the editor in all 87 Minnesota counties by June 11. 

Today we’re happy to share that CCLers in Minnesota reached their goal!

Pat explained her plan to come up with the project after volunteering with CCL for several months. "I created a website to have a one-stop-shop to get examples of letters to the editor, links to newspapers in every county, and to keep track of the progress we're making."

The website tracking letter to the editor progress includes examples of some of the published letters, which volunteers got letters published in which counties, as well as a project summary to be used during legislative outreach.

Congratulations to Minnesota’s CCLers!

Visit the LTE Website!

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Upcoming Trainings 

6/9: Motivational Interviewing Basics — Join John Sabin, CCL Great Lakes Regional Co-Coordinator, for a training that will show you how to use Motivational Interviewing to more effectively connect with your members of Congress, local leaders, or even members of your own CCL group. Motivational Interviewing is a communication style that fosters collaboration and offers a package of skills to collaborate with anyone. Join us!

6/16: Understanding Border Carbon Adjustments — This training with CCL Board member Dr. Ross Astoria will review the basics of border carbon adjustments and the practical aspects of border carbon adjustment implementation. Discussion of the European Union's carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) and Sen. Cramer's recent discussion of a border carbon tax will be included. Join us!

To see other topics and past trainings, visit the Training Topics page of CCL Community.