‘Glacier’ reveals the heroes and villains of U.S. climate policy » Yale Climate Relations

Even after his death, former President Jimmy Carter continues to leave a legacy of his public service. In the face of Trump's renewed swift action to withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement, his example empowers us to rise to the challenge and persist in climate action.

As he lay in state in Plains, Atlanta, and Washington, D.C., Americans learned anew two important lessons from Jimmy Carter through the many tellings of his life story. First, we know from his presidency—particularly from the solar hot water panels he installed on the roof of the White House that Ronald Reagan removed—that there would be setbacks. But secondly, what we learned from Carter's long post-presidential tenure is that one person can lead in many different positions and places in society.

As President Donald Trump enters his second inauguration, he has begun making good on his threats to quickly reverse or block parts of President Joe Biden's ambitious climate agenda. But because climate change will not slow down, climate action must not stop. Jimmy Carter showed us that people can also lead in boardrooms, classrooms, construction sites, farm fields, libraries, polling booths, and Sunday schools. From these locations, one can influence, at least indirectly, what happens in Washington. While the pace may be slow – one could say glacial – We are still making progress.

New book covers 60 years of progress and setbacks in climate politics

In Glacier: The Inside Story of Climate Politics, Chelsea Henderson traces the rise and fall of climate policy from the 1960s to the present. Her story was just beginning, seven years after installation, when Reagan removed Jimmy Carter's solar water heater panels from the White House roof. Her takeaway echoes Jimmy Carter's media profile: In politics, progress often comes with setbacks.

Chelsea Henderson was able to write the “insider story” of the past six decades of climate politics in the United States because she played multiple characters for nearly half the story, and because she was able to interview key players over the decades She is not.

Her partnership with several Republicans on Capitol Hill provides a unique advantage. Henderson served as senior policy adviser to Sen. John Warner, R-Virginia, and served as a staff professional on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, which at the time was composed of Sens. John Chaffee, R-R.I. Republican Sen. Bob Smith serves as chairman. Henderson also works for environmentally conscious companies and advocacy groups seeking to enact climate policy on the mountain.

Henderson tells her “insider story” in eight sections, which are divided into short chapters of two to ten pages. The book's organization and prose style certainly reflect Henderson's experience working for representatives, senators, and executives. These very busy people want to consume information in easily digestible portions. Henderson's chapters are short, clearly written, cleverly engaging, and logically sequenced. Her books are quick reads.

A who's who of climate heroes and villains

“Glacier” begins with the first president to commission a report on climate change, who, contrary to some recent news reports, was not Jimmy Carter, but Lyndon Johnson in 1965. Didn't follow in Johnson's footsteps on issues, but he did, signing legislation that created environmental governance and regulation as we know it today. Henderson points to a Democratic Congress, a high-profile oil spill off the California coast, a burning river (the Cuyahoga caught fire for the 13th time (!) in 1969), and public reaction to the first Earth Day. excitation. Gerald Ford completed Nixon's second term, and then we had a “sweater-wearing” Jimmy Carter and a “panel-off” Ronald Reagan.

After five presidential firsts, Henderson's attention turned to Congress, which parsed the story for decades. Frustration is now the norm. Pressure for action often builds on the House and/or Senate as a result of public engagement, but is then dissipated or deflected by the White House.

Both George H.W. and George W. Bush have abandoned campaign promises to combat climate change. Both George W. Bush and Donald Trump have abandoned international agreements partially negotiated by their Democratic predecessors: the Kyoto Protocol proposed by Vice President Al Gore and the Paris Agreement brokered by President Barack Obama.

While these public setbacks occur on the White House stage, work continues in the halls of Congress. Henderson tells the many stories of congressional representatives and senators, longtime legislative staffers, policymakers in federal agencies and departments, and directors and staff of environmental nonprofits who continue to craft laws that address climate causes and consequences, Policies and rules change.

Each of these stories has its own heroes and villains. These heroes include Representatives Bob Inglis (R-SC), Ed Markey (D-MA), and Henry Waxman (D-CA); Senator Joe Lieberman (D -CT), John McCain (R-AZ), and Tim Wirth (D-CO); Rafe Pomerance has served on Friends of the Earth and World Resource Institute, and was later appointed by President Clinton as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Environment and Development. Enemies include fossil fuel companies, including their CEOs and lobbyists, and the politicians they fund, such as Republican Sen. James Inhofe of Oklahoma. When Henderson introduces readers to a hero or villain, he depicts their appearance and character deftly, often with a sense of humor.

Decades later, after much trial and error with different combinations of allies, strategies, and tactics, a truly significant piece of climate legislation did become law. Henderson's final chapters recount the intense negotiations behind the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, then celebrates President Joe Biden's landmark achievement in a chapter aptly titled “BFD.”

What happens when climate policy historians turn their gaze to the future?

When Henderson submitted her manuscript to the publisher in August 2023, she had no idea that Donald Trump would win the 2024 election, or that Jimmy Carter would circle the Capitol days before Trump was inaugurated. The body is enshrined in a shaped hall. We wonder, what does she think will happen in the next chapter of Inside Climate Politics?

After taking some time to recover from the shock of the election, the author responded to an email inquiry. The most important challenge, she said, is “how to maintain the progress made under Biden and minimize the damage of a climate denier in the White House.” The rest she sorted into strengths and weaknesses.

Its disadvantages are obvious, first of all, it is a blow to the global reputation of the United States.

“Obviously, it doesn't look good for the largest emitter in history to once again be led by deniers. [on policy],” she wrote. Henderson added that if Plan 2025 were implemented, “the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), NASA and the National Weather Service, among others, would face untold risks.”

But she does see some merit. Trump's nominee for Environmental Protection Agency director, Republican Lee Zeldin, a former New York congressman, “recognizes that climate change is real.” Many Republican lawmakers are asking their leadership to “slowly move forward” on repealing the Inflation Reduction Act; in fact, some members want to keep at least some parts of the bill.

That said, it may be harder for Trump to undo Biden's inflation-cutting bill than it was for Reagan to undo Carter's solar water heater panels. The IRA could continue to strengthen one of the thinner threads Henderson weaves in her insider story: the emergence of conservative climate activism.

Henderson’s book provides a navigation map for the tumultuous political predicament we find ourselves in, and this is where Henderson will continue her own climate activism. She now serves as director of editorial content for RepublicEn.org, an organization formed by former Republican congressional representative Bob Inglis of South Carolina, for which she produces and hosts the podcast “The EcoRight Speaks.”

We know who will play the villains in the next chapter of American climate politics; the next heroes could come from all walks of life.