Sen. Ted Cruz used an old line from former President Trump to show his displeasure at President Biden recommitting America to the Paris Climate Agreement:
By rejoining the Paris Climate Agreement, President Biden indicates he’s more interested in the views of the citizens of Paris than in the jobs of the citizens of Pittsburgh. This agreement will do little to affect the climate and will harm the livelihoods of Americans.
— Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) January 20, 2021
Former President Trump used this same line when he pulled out of the Paris agreement in 2017:
.@POTUS "I was elected by voters of Pittsburgh, not Paris. I promised I wld exit or renegotiate any deal which fails to serve US interests"
— Kayleigh McEnany 45 Archived (@PressSec45) June 1, 2017
The line is “catchy,” but it’s aged poorly since as Pittsburgh actually embraced the agreement after Trump’s action in 2017:
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It's a catchy line, but Pittsburgh decided to voluntarily comply with Paris guidelines in spite of US withdrawal, so https://t.co/MHLH2M360u https://t.co/JwTjBV64Un
— Lachlan Markay (@lachlan) January 21, 2021
Mayor Bill Peduto even had his commitment to the agreement as his pinned tweet up until President Biden’s inuaguration yesterday:
For over 3.5 years, I have pinned this tweet to my account. Over 26M impressions, over 10K cities worldwide joined together. Today, President Biden rejoined the Paris agreement (and I unpinned this tweet from my account :). https://t.co/ppLQZBbKCE
— bill peduto (@billpeduto) January 20, 2021
Also, the line worked better for Trump in 2017 because he won the state in 2016 as opposed to what happened in 2020:
Let's check in on the voters of Pittsburgh https://t.co/5uwlZTXMgO pic.twitter.com/T7VPp1W5gX
— Ryan Rosenblatt, World Series Champion (@RyanRosenblatt) January 21, 2021
Also, this view of Pittsburgh is outdated and doesn’t really exist any longer:
Not sure why the Paris agreement will be bad for Pittsburgh's medicine-and-education-based economy.
But if we're talking the 1900 version of Pittsburgh, it's worth noting that US Steel shares hit a record low in March after two years of Trump's steel tariffs. https://t.co/5D9G8nbwku
— David Fickling (@davidfickling) January 21, 2021
Sen. Cruz has had better takes on the Paris agreement in the past. Such as this one:
I applaud @POTUS for putting American jobs & energy first by withdrawing the U.S. from the Paris Agreement. https://t.co/K3vabFUJq5
— Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) June 1, 2017
And this one in 2019 where he chided Nancy Pelosi over it:
?
ICYMI @SpeakerPelosi, @realDonaldTrump already made the decision to formally withdraw the US from the Paris Climate Agreement, a job-killing, wage-reducing, economy-crippling Obama-era deal that does nothing to meaningfully decrease global temperatures.https://t.co/5DwNwzJRST— Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) December 2, 2019
Sen. Cruz does have the facts on his side, although it’s the tweet from yesterday which will get all the attention:
Thanks to natural gas and private sector innovation, the U.S. has successfully reduced CO2 emissions and experienced solid economic growth since pulling out of the Paris Climate Agreement. Meanwhile, China & India’s emissions have increased.https://t.co/Hj5jxl4M9h
— Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) February 17, 2020
It’s too late for what SHOULD HAVE BEEN DONE, however:
Last night I urged POTUS to submit the Iran Deal & Paris Agreement to the Senate as treaties. By submitting these disastrous deals to the Senate, we can provide advice & consent if a future administration attempts to revive them.
Read my letter ? pic.twitter.com/0Qa8Fps5Yb
— Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) December 22, 2020
Sigh.
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