Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Trump Is Pulling US Out of Paris Climate Deal: Sources (axios.com)

Posted by msmash on from the shocker dept.

An anonymous reader shares a report: President Trump has made his decision to withdraw from the Paris climate accord, according to two sources with direct knowledge of the decision. Details on how the withdrawal will be executed are being worked out by a small team including EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt. They're deciding on whether to initiate a full, formal withdrawal -- which could take 3 years -- or exit the underlying United Nations climate change treaty, which would be faster but more extreme. Pulling out of Paris is the biggest thing Trump could do to unravel Obama's climate legacy. It sends a combative signal to the rest of the world that America doesn't prioritize climate change and threatens to unravel the ambition of the entire deal. News agency Reuters has corroborated the report with its own source. Further reading on Politico (which has also corroborated the news) and BBC. Update: Trump Announces US Withdrawal From Paris Climate Accord.

5 of 737 comments (clear)

  1. One Man by watermark · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Trump has really highlighted how much power/influence we choose to give to a single person. It amazes me that a president can unilaterally enter into or exit from agreements of this magnitude. If he has any positive legacy, I hope it's a legacy where we decided to further limit the power of the presidency.

    If we were to write a book for children of good vs. evil, it would be hard to cast Trump as the "good guy". Even if he were cast as the "bad guy", he makes decisions that seem so clearly wrong that it would be rejected as too cliche.

    1. Re:One Man by thegarbz · · Score: 5, Insightful

      But that's ok - you can continue your fantasy that Obama is the "good guy" and Trump is the "bad guy" because you liked Obama's decisions and methods... except you hate them when they're used against you.

      That's kind of how presidencies work. A good president uses powers for the people, a bad one against them.

      Mind you good and bad could be taken in many contexts. Such as ability to befriend overseas nations vs insult them. Or just ability to express a coherent thought.

  2. Re:Good by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Nuclear power is orders of magnitude safer than coal. 60 deaths per TWh for coal power worldwide avg, vs 0.04 deaths per TWh for nuclear, so a factor of 1500 better.

  3. Leading from behind... by __aaclcg7560 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I'm sure the Chinese are thrilled to be leading the rest of the world as the US withdraws into isolation.

  4. What if we make a better world for nothing? by Camembert · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Pulling out of the climate agreement unfortunately makes me think of this cartoon: https://climatesanity.files.wo...