A closer look at Republican National Convention platform

Issue #4: How to lower the temperature of election & planet ^🌡️

In this edition

• Republican National Convention starts in Milwaukee with Big Oil on the platform

• Biden faces mounting pressure to drop from race, including from climate groups

• Heat waves continue to plague the nation

The big picture

On the eve of the Republican National Convention, an assassination attempt against the former president at a Trump rally in rural Pennsylvania took an already chaotic, high-stakes presidential race into a new realm. Combative politics, violent language against opponents and vulnerable populations, and gun culture have been hallmarks of the Trump campaign since it began in 2015. 

As more information emerges on the shooting, which left Trump with minor injuries and killed a rally attendee, it is more important than ever to “take the temperature of the race down a notch” by focusing even more on policy that matters — not cult of personality. This newsletter attempts to do that in the realm of climate change.

With this in mind, the Republican National Convention — a highly-produced party event where the candidate, Trump, is officially nominated — launches this week in Wisconsin, with a platform that does not mention climate change, but that does include a promise to “drill, baby, drill” (The Intercept). In the platform document, the “unleash American energy” section states that Republicans will “unleash Energy Production from all sources, including nuclear, to immediately slash Inflation and power American homes, cars, and factories with reliable, abundant, and affordable Energy (sic).”

It also claims that the U.S. became the number 1 oil and gas producer under President Trump. Some basic fact checking from E&E News: “The U.S. became the world’s top oil producer in 2018 under Trump, but it became the top gas producer in 2011 under then-President Barack Obama. It has remained the top producer of both fuels since then, and output has grown consistently since President Joe Biden took office.”

The document also refers to the Green New Deal, which never passed Congress. It makes no mention of the Inflation Reduction Act, which has put almost $270 billion into GOP-led states over the past two years (CNN). It argues for cutting government regulations, streamlining permitting — which has some bi-partisan support — and ending restrictions on fossil fuels (perhaps referring to LNG exports). Many of these planks are mentioned in the Heritage Foundation far-right agenda for a second Trump term, discussed further below. 

The platform omits any mention of the abnormal heat this summer, which is getting major media attention — the western U.S. heat wave over the last two weeks is up to 4°C warmer than other similar events in the 20th century, according to ClimaMeter, because of climate change, which is primarily caused by the burning of fossil fuels. In addition, severe storms (Fox), driven by the heatwave continue to hit 35 million people in the Midwest.

Update: As we sent this newsletter out on Monday, July 15, Trump named Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance as his vice presidential candidate. Vance shifted his position even more toward climate denial as he sought Trump’s nomination, according to the New York Times. He also embraces the oil and gas industry, fracking in particular.

In the midst of all this heat, the Biden administration announced the first-ever federal heat rules for workers (to be finalized by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, OSHA, in … 2026 🙃).

As the Republican convention launches, President Joe Biden faces continuing pressure to drop his candidacy after his failure of a debate performance a few weeks ago, including calls from dozens of members of Congress, major funders, and a growing list of environmental groups (E&E News). Friends of the Earth questioned Biden’s ability to lead and Climate Defense and Sunrise called on him to step aside. Biden remains defiant to these challenges and is backed up by at least 80 Democratic governors and members of Congress — including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders, who argue that Biden remains the most qualified candidate on the ballot. 

One leading, and perhaps obvious contender to replace Biden on the top of the ticket is Vice President Kamala Harris. She was stronger on climate in her 2020 presidential bid than Biden, even promising to ban fracking and to “hold Big Oil accountable for its role in the climate crisis,” and to block new fossil fuel infrastructure (E&E News). Harris cast the deciding vote on the IRA, in front of a deadlocked Senate.

Other names being vetted include California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who is suing oil majors for deceiving the public about the dangers of fossil fuels for more than 50 years; Michigan's Gov. Gretchen Whitmer who passed and funded a strong state climate bill in a critical swing state (and who was also the victim of a far-right kidnapping plot); and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, who is working to pass bi-partisan climate legislation and pushing renewables in a fossil fuel rich swing state, also critical to the election.

But what’s really happening across the U.S. and how is climate change shaping this critical election? These are the questions this newsletter will ask, fortnightly, through the election in November and beyond. So please subscribe and forward this email along if you find it useful.

John Curtis, a Utah congressman and founder of the Conservative Climate Caucus in 2021, won his primary election for the U.S. Senate against a Trump-endorsed opponent by a 20 point margin. Curtis leads a group of Republican members of Congress who acknowledge the reality of climate change — a low bar, but one that’s counter to their party’s leadership — and have worked with Democrats on energy policy, including a bill to track carbon intensity of U.S. products. Curtis also led a delegation to the UN climate conference in Dubai, COP28 (where he defended the role of fossil fuels in the world’s energy mix). 

The conservative Heritage Foundation agenda for a second Trump administration, called “Project 2025,” started to gain traction in the press only after Trump tried to distance himself from the nearly 1,000-page document. Numerous reports pointed out that many Heritage Foundation authors were key members of the first Trump administration, including his EPA chief of staff, a FERC commissioner, a Bureau of Land Management acting director, and numerous White House advisors.

According to Popular Information, 31 out of 38 key authors of “Project 2025” came out of the Trump administration.

Information integrity (disinfo)

A recent NATO report on climate change and security highlights the risk of climate disinformation, primarily coming from Russian state actors. The report notes: “Kremlin-backed actors have been found to be pushing climate change denialism across the Alliance, all while actively attempting to derail climate change mitigation policies and renewable energy investments.” Examples include false social media posts in the wake of the disastrous fires in Hawaii in August 2023.

Add to that the disinformation coming from the top of the Republican ticket, including Trump’s frequent false and exaggerated statements about electric tanks and planes for the U.S. military (Politico). 

Trailing thoughts

Question for you: As you watch American politics unfold this year, what is the climate issue that holds the highest stakes for you? Are you worried about extreme weather and our ability to rebound? Are you an EV or electric bus person? Are you worried about U.S. climate finance commitments? Are you just worried? Let us know! 

Why stakes? We are calling this newsletter Climate Stakes U.S. because the stakes are, indeed, too high. NYU journalism professor Jay Rosen has urged reporters to consider the stakes of elections, and not just the odds of winning them, and we aim to do that for the climate. As the year develops, we will look for high stakes moments and show where they do — or where they should — overlap with American politics. 

A word about us: This newsletter comes from the Global Strategic Communications Council. GSCC is a global network of communications professionals in the field of climate and energy. The views expressed in quotes in this newsletter are those of the people making the comments and not necessarily those of GSCC, and they are presented as a service in the interest of informing the public. GSCC does not endorse candidates.

This edition was written by Nate.