“Green New Deal” proponent Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC), will reportedly serve on a climate change panel for former Vice President Joe Biden’s campaign.
What We Know:
- Lauren Hitt, a spokeswoman for Ocasio-Cortez, told Reuters Tuesday, “She made the decision with members of the Climate Justice community and she will be fully accountable to them and the larger advocacy community during this process.”
- Ocasio-Cortez, a member of the freshman “Squad,” was one of Sen. Bernie Sanders’ most vocal surrogates before he dropped out of the race and endorsed Biden last month. She will advise Biden’s team on climate policy as a Sanders representative.
- The panel is part of an effort by Biden’s campaign to win over Sanders’ supporters and others to the party’s left still wary of his candidacy. Biden and Sanders have agreed to work together on six joint policy committees, which includes the climate change panel, according to The Washington Post.
- “We’ve set up joint committees together to deal with how we would deal with everything from the (coronavirus) all the way down to education, the criminal justice system, the new Green Deal, etc.,” Biden told KLAS-TV in Las Vegas Tuesday.
- Ocasio-Cortez has not formally endorsed Biden but has said she plans to vote for him.
Biden firmly believes the Green New Deal is essential in solving the climate challenges we face, according to his campaign website. “It powerfully captures two basic truths, which are at the core of his plan: (1) the United States urgently needs to embrace greater ambition on an epic scale to meet the scope of this challenge, and (2) our environment and our economy are completely and totally connected.”
