The Democratic Divide on Climate Policy

Several weeks ago, I had commented during a Zero Net Fifty podcast that I thought there was a coming together — under the Biden banner — of pro-gressive and establishment Democrats on climate matters. It was naïve of me to believe the wings of the Democratic Party would begin to flap in unison so far ahead of the convention.

Diversity has always been both the strength and weakness of the Democratic Party. In the past, compromise — or at least some accommodation for long enough to get presidents elected — has been possible. Today differences of opinion on issues like climate change and racial justice may defy traditional negotiation. In part, the differences of opinion are complicated by demands for a generational shift in party and congressional leadership.

Youth movement groups often see matters like climate and racism as more moral than political, which causes them to be viewed as binary. They accuse older generations of having compromised their futures away. I think the coming together of generations in the streets calling for racial justice and systemic change is evidence that morality is hardly unique to any one generation. Older generations have learned through experience that you often need to give in order to get and that failing to compromise can mean gridlock. The differences between the generations is more a matter of where each is willing…