San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
Biden introduces climate team — ‘ We literally have no time to waste’
WILMINGTON, Del — Just as the United States has needed a unified, national response to COVID19, it needs one for dealing with climate change, Presidentelect Joe Biden said Saturday as he rolled out key members of his environmental team.
“We literally have no time to waste,” Biden told reporters as introduced his choices.
The approach is a shift from Trump’s presidency, which has been marked by efforts to boost oil and gas production while rolling back government efforts intended to safeguard the environment. The incoming Biden team will try to undo or block many of the current administration’s initiatives. There also will be an emphasis on looking out for the lowincome, working class and minority communities hit hardest by fossil fuel pollution and climate change.
In his remarks, Biden stressed the diversity of an emerging team that he described as “brilliant, qualified, tested and they are barrier-busting.” The nominees Biden introduced Saturday had compelling personal stories that they cited as guiding them if confirmed by the Senate. New Mexico Rep. Deb Haaland would be the first Native American to lead the Interior Department, which has wielded influence over the nation’s tribes for generations.
“This moment is profound when we consider the fact that a former secretary of the Interior once proclaimed his goal, was to quote, ‘ civilize or exterminate’ us,” Haaland said. “I’m a living testament to the failure of that horrific ideology.“
Haaland was referring to Alexander H. H. Stuart, who said that in 1851.
Former twoterm Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm is in line to be energy secretary. She described arriving in the U. S. at age 4 and brought from Canada by a family “seeking opportunity.”
North Carolina official Michael Regan would be the first African American man to run the Environmental Protection Agency. Regan, the state environmental head since 2017, has made a name for himself by pursuing cleanups of industrial toxins and helping the lowincome and minority communities significantly affected by pollution.
Biden’s nominee to oversee the Council on Environmental Quality is Brenda Mallory. If confirmed, she would be the first African American to hold the position since it was created more than half a century ago. Two other members of the team introduced Saturday do not need Senate confirmation. They are Gina McCarthy, to serve as national climate adviser, and Ali Zaidi, to serve as her deputy.