Bloomberg Touts Biden’s Climate/Clean Energy Legacy: Harris Not Emphasizing It Now Due to Swing-State Voter Concerns

 

     Bloomberg just published an article touting Biden’s climate and clean energy legacy, which is clearly record-breaking, while also noting that Harris was keeping relatively quiet about it to allay concerns from swing-state voters about it being too much spending for too little return. The government investment in clean energy in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act and the Inflation Reduction Act have led to massive private investment in clean energy projects. The graph below shows how private investment in clean energy has grown while the private investment in oil & gas that dropped off during Covid has not recovered from 2020 levels. This does not mean more oil & gas investment is not needed but suggests that less will be needed in the future, especially when clean energy can actually make up the full amount of the growth in energy needed annually, which has yet to occur.

     Biden’s climate/clean energy legacy is huge and shows that he delivered for the climate change voters and perhaps we should acknowledge that that is enough incentivization for now. Thus, Harris can pivot to other issues that resonate more with voters than climate action, which is really not that high on most voters’ concerns. Bloomberg notes:

 

“Just 3% of registered voters in seven battleground states say climate change is the most important issue for them this November, according to a Bloomberg News/Morning Consult poll taken in late August. Only 39% say climate is “very important.”

 

     Up to 90% of those private investments associated with the IRA went to red-leaning areas, according to E2 as the graph below shows.

 

     Bloomberg considers that Kamala Harris is well aware of how backlash to a green energy agenda can hurt her campaign. Perhaps enough has been invested for now? The Biden clean energy investment boom graph is shown below.

 

     As the graph below shows, the U.S. is second behind China in CO2 emissions. How much that will drop in the years to come is not known but we should be able to begin dropping emissions significantly by 2030. Perhaps in the early-mid 2030s U.S. emissions will drop below those of India, which are still rising considerably due mainly to coal use.

 

     The graph below shows the changes in emissions projections after the IRA. Harris can confidently say that Biden’s effort on emissions reduction was phenomenal without having to commit more resources or lobby for more action. Of course, climate hawks say we need to do more and point out that we would still be behind our Paris Accord commitments 2030 trajectory. However, many of us think we are good for now with the IRA’s record-breaking investments. If the GOP comes to power, either through the presidential election or through control of Congress, there would likely be attempts to scale back some of the planned spending associated with the IRA.

 

 

References:

Kamala Harris Turns Biden's $493 Billion Climate Legacy Into a Footnote. Jennifer A Dlouhy and Ari Natter. Bloomberg. September 25, 2024.  Kamala Harris Turns Biden's $493 Billion Climate Legacy Into a Footnote (msn.com)