June 3, 2017 - The CoalBlue Project issued the following statement today from former Ohio Congressman Zack Space, Chair of the CoalBlue Project Board of Directors:

In announcing his intention to withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement on climate, President Trump spoke today of his being “elected to represent the citizens of Pittsburgh, not Paris.”  It is impossible to hear the President refer to cities such as Pittsburgh, and Youngstown, Ohio, in explaining his decision on the Paris accord, and not be struck by the incongruity of his remarks today and his proposing, only eight days earlier, to slash, by 70%, the U.S. Department of Energy budget for carbon capture programs.  The dissonance between the two is both shocking and unsettling.

For the working men and women of western Pennsylvania, eastern Ohio, and in communities across America tied to the production and use of fossil energy – coal, natural gas, or oil – continued federal support for the development and deployment of new and emerging carbon capture technologies is of paramount importance, just as it matters to all Americans concerned about, and committed to, a sustainable energy future.

That energy and environmental advocates have overcome long-standing differences and are now working together, in an extraordinary display of unity, in support carbon capture makes the President’s budget decision all the more inexplicable.

While the President’s decision to withdraw from the Paris Agreement will undoubtedly unleash a firestorm of debate, it is important that we not allow that debate to obscure the even more consequential policy choices reflected in the President’s FY 2018 budget proposal.

During last year’s campaign, then-candidate Trump repeatedly spoke of putting coal miners back to work, and he has repeated those promises as President.  Withdrawing from the Paris Agreement will not create any new coal jobs in America.  Yet, supporting the accelerated deployment of carbon capture systems will do both that and constructively move our nation forward toward a balanced, and thus more secure, fossil-inclusive sustainable energy future.

We urge the President to remain true to his word.

Learn more about the CoalBlue Project at www.coalblue.org.

The CoalBlue Project is a nationwide coalition of current and former Democratic officeholders and Democratic Party officials dedicated to building support for sustainable energy policies that include sustainable fossil fuels, and to uniting Democrats and others around new solutions to the most difficult environmental and energy challenges of our day.

The CoalBlue Project is a 501(c)(4) tax-exempt corporation.  Contributions made to the CoalBlue Project are not deductible for federal income tax purposes as a charitable contribution.  

The CoalBlue Project does not engage in electioneering activities intended to help elect or defeat candidates for public office. 

Zack Space