President
Obama will head to a historic climate change summit in Paris next week
with a fragile U.S. commitment to cut greenhouse gas emissions, and
analysts say the president is limited in terms of concrete promises and
instead will act as little more than a “cheerleader” in the fight
against global warming.
The United Nations meeting — formally
known as the 21st Conference of Parties, or COP 21 — is by the
administration’s own acknowledgment the last true chance for the world
to come together and forge a long-term, international agreement to
reduce harmful pollution and stem the tide of rising global
temperatures. The White House already has promised the rest of the world
that the U.S. will cut its own emissions by at least 26 percent by
2025 [a commitment that will put the Eastern Seaboard working poor in serious financial jeopardy ~ editor] , an announcement made in conjunction with a vow from China, the
world’s biggest polluter, to cap its emissions by 2030 and then begin
reductions.
Analysts say the
administration is wrong to give the impression that it can guarantee
U.S. commitments to cut emissions further. Some also say Mr. Obama’s
promises ultimately may fall to legal challenges and stiff bipartisan
resistance in the U.S.
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