After a so called side deal to significantly expand fossil fuel infrastructure that was sponsored by Sen. Joe Manchin (D.West Virginia), on Tuesday night, the Senate passed a must pass government funding bill. This was a major victory for thousands who mobilized against it.
Manchin announcedBefore Tuesday’s vote, the proposal was removed after it became obvious that it wouldn’t haveThe votes to pass. It was attached to the budget bill. The vote would have likely failed, potentially leading to a government shut down at the end.
The proposal would have been Very limitedThe regulatory power of key environmental laws was granted the green light for numerous oil and gas projects. This was despite fierce opposition from activists as well as progressive lawmakers for its attempts to enrich and sustain the fossil fuel industry. The proposal was indeed approved. at least partially writtenAmerican Petroleum Institute, the largest fossil fuel trade organization, an allyManchin, himself a coal baron.
According to research, the bill would have been a major contributor in the climate crisis. Oil Change International’s analysis revealed that the bill would have allowed for the acceleration of projects related to fossil fuel expansion. would have665 million metric tonnes of greenhouse gasses were added to the atmosphere every year, which is more than any emissions reductions impact that the bill’s proponents claimed it would.
Indigenous and Community activists who live along the proposed path of the Mountain Valley Pipeline, which Manchin sought to fast track with the bill, said that the bill would have exposed Appalachian communities to countless spillsAnd other safety hazards during the pipeline’s construction and while it was in operation.
Climate and Community groupsProtests and demonstrations. sent numerous lettersTo DemocratsThe Democratic leadershipThey are urged to cancel the deal.
Climate and community activists celebrated the death – however temporary – of Manchin’s proposal.
“Senator Manchin’s dirty deal went down in flames today because Indigenous and frontline communities raised their voices and fought back,” said Oil Change International in a statementHowever, the deal was still being discussed in upcoming bills. “This legislation would have had deadly consequences for communities and the climate, and we applaud all Members of Congress who stood with frontline communities and boldly opposed it. That’s real climate leadership.”
Food and Water Watch observed that the campaign to end the proposal was a success despite all odds.
“Tonight’s turnaround represents a remarkable, against-all-odds victory by a determined grassroots climate movement against the overwhelming financial and political might of the fossil fuel industry and its Senate enablers,” said Food and Water Watch Executive Director Wenonah Hauter in a statement. “While the campaign against polluting oil and gas is far from over, this repudiation of Senator Manchin’s so-called permitting reform bill marks a huge victory against dirty energy – and also against dirty backroom Washington dealmaking.”
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), also celebrated the victory of climate activists.
“I want to congratulate the more than 650 environmental groups and community organizations who made clear that, in the midst of the horrific climate crisis that we face, the last thing we need is a side deal which would build more pipelines and fossil fuel projects,” said Sanders in a statement. “This is a victory for the survival of the planet and a major loss for the fossil fuel industry.”
Sanders was a key opponent to the deal. He sent a letter last week opposing the deal. urging his colleaguesto oppose the deal and had Signed ontoEight senators sent a second letter last week expressing concern about the potential negative effects that the deal could have on environmental justice.
More than 70 Democrats in the House had also voiced their opposition to the deal, provisions of which they said were tantamount to “attempts to short-circuit or undermine the law in the name of ‘reform.’”
However, the Senate proposal was defeated by Republicans and Democrats.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell(R-Kentucky). had been whippingRepublicans will vote against the proposal because of reasons that seem. To be chalked up to revenge for the party; the GOP had come up with its own fossil fuel permitting bill that shares similarities with Manchin’s deal. And their opposition to Manchin’s side deal appears to have been triggered by the West Virginia senator’s support of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which they viewed as a betrayal.
However, the Republican version to the fossil fuel expansion bill won’t get enough support from enough Democrats to pass.
