Bernie Sanders speech at the "Climate State of the Union"
Here is the transcript:
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
Well let me begin by thanking all of you – here and folks watching live stream all over this country for standing up for our environment, for standing up for the fossil fuel industry and telling them that short term profits are not more important than the future of our planet. Thank you all very much!
And I wanna give special thanks to the Howard University Gospel Quire for that great performance, and I wanna thank 350.org and the other organizations involved in this event and I'll tell you why: it's not just that Bill McKibben is a neighbor of mine in Vermont, it's that I am inspired. I am truly inspired by the work that you are doing. And your understanding that, while Donald Trump wants to divide us up, you are helping to bring people of all walks of life together. And not only all walks of life in the United States of America – when we talk about climate change, it goes without saying that we are talking about a global crisis and it's imperative that we bring people all over the world together to fight to save this planet.
You know last night we heard President Trump's State of the Union address. And it is my job as a United States Senator to have to be there. That's what I gotta do. But among the many other – many of the absurd and dishonest things, and ugly things that he said, there is one interesting reality: in that if you go to the scientific community and you say to them “what is the major global crisis that we face?”, the vast majority of them will say it is climate change. And they will say that it is absolutely imperative, and a life and death issue that we have got to transform our energy system away from fossil fuel to sustainable energy. And yet, Donald Trump spoke last night for over an hour. He talked about many things, but somehow he forgot to mention the words “climate change”. What an outrage!
But we should not be surprised, because Donald Trump, one of the great scientists of our time, has determined after years and years of exhaustive study, that climate change is a hoax brought to us from China. And based on that brilliant analysis, not only does he not talk about climate change, but horrifically and dangerously, he has appointed administrators of the EPA, of the Department of Energy, who are doing everything they can to stop the movement towards sustainable energy. And what we are about here tonight and all over this country, and what we will be about tomorrow as we knock on doors, as we get involved in grass roots politics, what we are about is telling Donald Trump and the Koch Brothers, and all of these people that their days are numbered! Fossil fuels days are numbered! We are gonna transform our energy system.
If Donald Trump doesn't know it, I know that you do, that this planet is warming at an alarming rate. 2017 was the 2nd hottest year on record, behind only 2016. And 17 of the 18 hottest years have occurred since 2001. Yes, Mr. Trump – climate change is real! And what you have seen and what people all across this country have seen, sometimes in very tragic ways, are the kinds of extreme weather disturbances that have impacted so many people, the type of flooding that is impacting not only areas of the United States, but places all over the world, drought, wild fires, heat waves, extreme storms, mud slides, rising sea levels, and much, much more. In terms of climate change, the debate is over. What we now have to understand is, the issue in front of us is not a scientific debate. It has everything to do with political will!
Some of you may have noticed the other day that the Koch brothers and their billionaire friends are planning to spend some $400 million on the 2018 election. $400 million coming from a handful of billionaires. And that tells me and tells you that not only do we have to take on the fossil fuel industry, we also have to take on this disastrous citizens united supreme court decision! Because whether the issue is climate change, whether the issue is health care, and the need to move this country to a medicare for all, single payer system, whether the issue is DACA and the need for comprehensive immigration reform, whether the issue is raising the minimum wage to a living wage, whether the issue is making public colleges and universities tuition free, where the issue is protecting a woman's right to choose, and establishing equal pay for equal work. All of those issues and many more are issues that the American people want resolved. They want a government, they want an economy, they want an environment that works for all of us, not just the few.
Now the good news, as all of you know is – not withstanding Trump, in our country in cities, and towns and states, and all over this world, we are making significant progress in transforming our global energy system. In Chili, the lowest cost electricity ever produced is coming from solar. And in our own country we are seeing hundreds of thousands of good paying jobs being established through wind and solar and geothermal and other sustainable energy. There is no doubt in my mind, and by the way, no doubt in corporate America's mind, who are investing more and more in sustainable energy, and less and less in fossil fuels – there is no doubt that the future is with us! That we will create an energy system which is clean, non polluting, and sustainable.
Now that is what we will do, and the question is how quickly we will accomplish that. So my request of you is please, get involved in the political process. Start running for office – you can do it! You can run for school board, city council, state legislature, congress or the senate. Trust me, I work in the senate, I know that you could do it.
So brothers and sisters, we've got a lot of work in front of us, but I am honestly so inspired by seeing people all over this country do extraordinary work, and I know that you are gonna get involved in that process.
And let me conclude as a father of four and a grandfather of seven, what we are talking about is nothing less than the future of this planet! And in this struggle, we cannot, we must not fail, and with your hard work I know we will succeed!
And now, I want to introduce to you your emcees for the evening; Reverend Lennox Yearwood of the Hip Hop Caucus, and Bill McKibben of 350.org.
Thank you all very much!
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