Judges limit Biden’s power to cut emissions

Conservative justices prevent strict controls on coal-fired power plants in latest clash with president

JOE BIDEN’S climate change agenda was dealt a severe blow by the US Supreme Court last night as it limited his authority to reduce carbon emissions.

Mr Biden, bruised from the court’s abortion ruling last week, called it a “devastating decision” as he has a stated aim for America to reach net zero emissions by 2050.

The United Nations called it “a setback in our fight against climate change”.

The 6-3 decision is a blow to the US president’s cornerstone agenda just as his popularity has hit record lows.

At 37 per cent this week, Mr Biden’s public approval rating is at the lowest level of his 18-month presidency, according to a Reuters/ipsos poll.

The climate change ruling comes after two other wide-reaching Supreme Court rulings – on access to abortion and guns – again puts the Biden administration at odds with Trump-appointed conservative justices.

The court decided the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) did not have the power under the Clean Air Act anti-pollution law to set sweeping limits on emissions from coal-fired power plants. Those plants produce nearly 20 per cent of the electricity consumed in the US.

Mr Biden said: “It’s another devastating decision that aims to take our country backwards. Today’s decision sides with special interests that have waged a long-term campaign to strip away our right to breathe clean air.

“The science confirms what we all see with our own eyes – the wildfires, droughts, extreme heat, and intense storms are endangering our lives and livelihoods. Our fight against climate change must carry forward, and it will.”

A group of coal-producing states, led by West Virginia, and coal companies, asked the court to limit the EPA’S ability to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from existing power plants. Patrick Morrisey, West Virginia attorney general, called the ruling a “huge victory against federal overreach”.

Chief Justice John Roberts, writing for the court’s majority, said that capping carbon dioxide emissions at a level that will force a nationwide transition away from the use of coal to generate electricity “may be a sensible solution to the crisis of the day”, but the EPA did not have “the authority to adopt on its own such a regulatory scheme”.

In a dissenting opinion, the court’s three liberal justices wrote: “Whatever else this court may know about, it does not have a clue about how to address climate change. The court appoints itself, instead of Congress or the expert agency, the decision maker on climate policy.”

It was the latest Supreme Court decision this month that will have profound effects on the United States.

Last week, the court overruled Roe v Wade, the 1973 decision enshrining the nationwide right to abortion. It also expanded the rights of gun owners to carry their weapons in public.

Following the overturning of Roe v Wade, American men are rushing to get vasectomies, doctors have claimed.