U.N. report makes the case for Democrats' climate spending — and more


A new U.N. report confirms what the record-setting fires and smoky skies over much of America have been making clear for weeks — the world is hot and getting hotter, some of the damage is irreversible, and humans are going to suffer greatly as a result. It's difficult to read the news and not feel a fair amount of despair for the world our children are inheriting.
Despair can easily curdle into inaction, however. Things are bad, but we can and must still take action to ensure they don't get even worse. "Every bit of warming matters, and every bit of avoided warming matters," one expert told CNN.
So where do we start? Probably with Democrats' new $3.5 trillion budget proposal.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
With passage of a bipartisan infrastructure bill seemingly assured, Senate Democrats officially introduced their budget resolution on Monday morning, which is expected to pass on a party-line vote. The proposal includes new money for health care and social spending, but the plan also includes important new provisions to mitigate climate change.
Among those measures: A mandate to increase the proportion of U.S. electricity produced with renewable energy sources, tax incentives for electric vehicles, spending on building weatherization projects and more. The release of the new U.N. report gives new impetus to these efforts: Scientists are sounding a "code red for humanity." Congress can't just walk away from that alarm, can they?
This, naturally, is where Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) comes in. He has already pronounced himself "very disturbed" by the proposal's call to reduce fossil fuels. "I know they have the climate portion in here, and I'm concerned about that," he said when the proposal was unveiled in July. Another moderate Democrat, Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.), has announced that the overall bill is too expensive for her to support in its current form. With the Senate split 50-50, the bill won't pass without their support.
That's not good enough. America can't solve climate change all by itself. (China, for example, has its own heavy lifting to do on the issue.) But the U.N. report is a clear signal that the Democrats' budget bill is just the beginning of what must be done.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Joel Mathis is a writer with 30 years of newspaper and online journalism experience. His work also regularly appears in National Geographic and The Kansas City Star. His awards include best online commentary at the Online News Association and (twice) at the City and Regional Magazine Association.
-
Will Republicans kill the filibuster to end the shutdown?
Talking Points GOP officials contemplate the ‘nuclear option’
-
Millions turn out for anti-Trump ‘No Kings’ rallies
Speed Read An estimated 7 million people participated, 2 million more than at the first ‘No Kings’ protest in June
-
Western Alaska reels as storm aftermath prompts mass evacuations
UNDER THE RADAR Alaskan lawmakers point to climate change as airlifts relocate hundreds from coastal communities devastated by the remnants of Typhoon Halong
-
Are inflatable costumes and naked bike rides helping or hurting ICE protests?
Talking Points Trump administration efforts to portray Portland and Chicago as dystopian war zones have been met with dancing frogs, bare butts and a growing movement to mock MAGA doomsaying
-
Shutdown: Are Democrats fighting the right battle?
Feature Democrats are holding firm on health insurance subsidies as Trump ramps up the pain by freezing funding and vowing to cut more jobs
-
Could Democrats lose the New Jersey governor’s race?
Today’s Big Question Democrat Mikie Sherrill stumbles against Republican Jack Ciattarelli
-
Gaza peace deal: why did Trump succeed where Biden failed?
Today's Big Question As the first stage of a ceasefire begins, Trump’s unique ‘just-get-it-done’ attitude may have proven pivotal to negotiations
-
‘Every argument has a rational, emotional and rhetorical component’
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day