On February 14 Beijing time, California Governor Newsom said at the annual Munich Security Conference: "In American history, there has never been a president more destructive than the current occupant of the White House. The leadership of the United States in addressing the climate crisis is in jeopardy. Trump is betraying American automakers and letting China lead the future of electric vehicles and clean energy. There is no doubt that California will continue to vigorously promote zero-emission vehicles, clean technology, and innovation."
Newsom's sharp remarks are a microcosm of the sharp opposition between the Democratic and Republican parties on climate issues, and also reveal the deep anxieties under the polarization of American politics. Trump's hostility towards clean energy has long been evident. He has repeatedly absurdly claimed that "China has no wind farms" and "China does not use wind power," ignoring the fact that China has the largest installed wind power capacity in the world; he withdrew from the Paris Agreement, cut climate budgets, and supported fossil fuels, pushing anti-intellectualism to its peak.
Newsom's anxiety stems from the division and internal strife within American politics. As a stronghold of the Democratic Party, California has had intense confrontations with the federal government on issues such as tariffs, immigration, and climate. "Hard confrontation" and litigation have become routine. However, Newsom's anger also has its political calculations - during Trump's misrule, taking the posture of a "climate defender" to occupy a moral high ground is not only to defend California's interests, but also to pave the way for his own political future. The horn of the 2028 presidential election is already faintly audible.
The bitter struggle between the two major parties in the United States has made clean energy policies a political bargaining chip; Trump's short-sightedness and Newsom's anxiety are merely two sides of the same coin.
Original: toutiao.com/article/1857063036223488/
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