The criticisms are based on a yet-to-be-released plan outlined in a Reuters report in which one person advising Biden characterized the Democratic front-runner as seeking a “middle ground” on policies to reduce planet-warming emissions.
Additional details in the report described Biden’s forthcoming policy as likely to include reinstating Obama-era regulations on automobiles and coal-fired power plants, while leaving a role for nuclear energy and natural gas in the U.S. energy mix. The emerging policy has sparked criticism among Biden’s political rivals and has left supporters worried that he is underestimating the passion on climate change, particularly among Millennials who have embraced the Green New Deal, an ambitious resolution calling for an end to fossil fuels.
“There is no ‘middle ground’ when it comes to climate policy,” Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., tweeted.
Gov. Jay Inslee of Washington, who has centered his campaign on climate change, praised Biden and former President Barack Obama for making “historic progress” on climate change but added: “We cannot simply go back to the past. We need a bold climate plan for our future.”
Biden on Friday sought to remind voters that he was an early supporter of tackling climate change and promised a detailed plan soon.
“I’m proud to have been one of the first to introduce climate change legislation,’’ he said on Twitter. “What I fought for in 1986 is more important than ever — climate change is an existential threat. Now. Today.”
Julian Brave NoiseCat, director of Green New Deal strategy at Data for Progress, a left-leaning think tank, said he hoped Biden’s plan is ultimately a robust one.
“We do have a policy out there designed to build a new climate coalition. It’s called the Green New Deal, and he needs to jump aboard it,” NoiseCat said.
But Paul Bledsoe, a strategic adviser at Progressive Policy Institute and a former Clinton White House climate staff member, praised Biden for seeking a climate plan that would appeal to working-class Americans.
“Indulging in ideological purity is great until you actually want to solve the problem,” he said.
This article originally appeared in The New York Times.