Washington Gov. Inslee focuses on climate change in 2020 bid
SEATTLE — Declaring climate change the nation’s most pressing issue, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee launched his 2020 Democratic presidential bid on Friday with a promise to refocus American government and society.
“It is time for our nation to set a new priority,” Mr. Inslee told supporters gathered at a solar panel business in Seattle. “This is truly our moment. It is our moment to solve America’s most daunting challenge and make it the first, foremost and paramount duty of the United States ... to defeat climate change.”
The 68-year-old former congressman becomes the first governor to enter a race dominated by senators. Former Vice President Joe Biden and former Texas Rep. Beto O’Rourke also are expected to make highly anticipated 2020 announcements in the coming weeks.
But Mr. Inslee says his emphasis on combating climate change sets him apart from his competitors and from Republican President Donald Trump.
“We are all angry and outraged by this president,” he said, adding that rather than get drawn into Mr. Trump’s vortex, he would “unite Americans in this moment to solve our most urgent problem.”
Mr. Inslee frames climate action as an economic opportunity, not just a moral imperative. He didn’t talk specifically Friday about the costs of his vision, other than to criticize considerable tax subsidies for the fossil fuel industry. But he argued that public and private investments in clean energy are a net boon for working Americans that would create “millions of jobs,” from building “electric cars in Michigan” to installing solar panels on homes in every state.
Mr. Inslee says no presidential candidate has hinged a campaign as heavily on climate and environmental policy as he will. He unveiled a blue-and-green campaign logo with an arc of the Earth, eschewing the typical red, white and blue. His Twitter feed Friday was replete with the hashtag #OurClimateMoment.
He plans his first trip as a candidate to Iowa next week, with events geared to climate issues. Trips to Nevada and California will follow.
Mr. Inslee may have a larger opening on climate since billionaire environmental activist Tom Steyer has passed on a national campaign, opting instead to continue his advocacy for impeaching and removing Mr. Trump from office. Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a billionaire who has spent millions of dollars on climate issues, may run.
Mr. Steyer tweeted Friday: “It’s good to know that a climate champion like @GovInslee will be in the race, pushing the country to recognize what is at stake.”
Mr. Inslee hasn’t specifically endorsed the Green New Deal introduced by New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey, and he didn’t during his speech Friday. But he said last month that he was “thrilled that this ... resolution has been brought forward” to push for action.
“This is an aspirational document that sets the goal, rather than the policy. It’s not meant to be a policy document,” he said during an interview after his campaign event.