Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez says her Green New Deal climate plan would cost at least $10 trillion
- Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said Wednesday that her ambitious plan to fight climate change, expand the social safety net, and stimulate the economy would cost at least $10 trillion.
- "I don't think anyone wants to spend that amount of money, it's not a fun number to say, I'm not excited to say we need to spend $10 trillion on climate, but ... it's just the fact of the scenario," she said.
- Ocasio-Cortez has forced the issue of climate change to the forefront of the 2020 Democratic primary, pressuring candidates to lay out their own plans to address the impact of rising temperatures.
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Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said Wednesday that her ambitious plan to fight climate change, expand the social safety net, and stimulate the economy would cost at least $10 trillion.
Ocasio-Cortez introduced her Green New Deal resolution with Sen. Ed Markey in February, but did not release a price tag estimate at the time.
"I think we really need to get to $10 trillion to have a shot," the freshman lawmaker told The Hill on Wednesday, adding, "I know it's a ton. I don't think anyone wants to spend that amount of money, it's not a fun number to say, I'm not excited to say we need to spend $10 trillion on climate, but ... it's just the fact of the scenario."
The Bronx native acknowledged that proposing $10 trillion in government spending will be unpopular among many Americans.
"It's not politically popular, people are going to call it unrealistic, and I just don't think people understand how bad the problem is," she said.
Ocasio-Cortez has forced the issue of climate change to the forefront of the 2020 Democratic primary, pressuring candidates to lay out their own plans to address a changing climate and its impact. The freshman lawmaker said she supports both Washington Gov. Jay Inslee's $5 trillion plan to fight climate change and Sen. Elizabeth Warren's nearly $2 trillion plan.
She argued Wednesday that the "entire field of climate plans still needs to be pushed."
Her push for a Green New Deal comes as President Donald Trump's administration works to undo Obama-era rules aimed at reducing greenhouse gases. Trump, when asked about climate change by Piers Morgan on "Good Morning Britain" this week gave a confusing answer: "I believe there's a change in weather, and I think it changes both ways."
However, as NASA writes, "97 percent or more of actively publishing climate scientists agree: Climate-warming trends over the past century are extremely likely due to human activities."
And according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, extreme weather incidents "are projected to increase as a result of climate change."