Voter Guide: The Party Platforms
The Republican Party:
“As part of a global climate change strategy, Republicans support technology-driven, market-based solutions that will decrease emissions, reduce excess greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, increase energy efficiency, mitigate the impact of climate change where it occurs, and maximize any ancillary benefits climate change might offer for the economy.... Republicans caution against the doomsday climate change scenarios peddled by the aficionados of centralized command-and-control government.... [W]e will insist on reasonable policies that do not force Americans to sacrifice their way of life or trim their hope and dreams for their children. This perspective serves not only the people of the United States but also the world’s poorest peoples, who would suffer terribly if climate change is severe – just as they would if the world economy itself were to be crippled. We must not allow either outcome.”
Click here to read the complete Republican Party platform. The Environmental Protection section on page 35 discusses climate change.
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The Democratic Party:
“We will help pay for [clean energy programs] by dedicating a portion of the revenues generated by an economy-wide cap-and-trade program – a step that will also dramatically reduce our greenhouse gas emissions and jumpstart billions in private capital investment in a new energy economy.”
Click here to read the complete Democratic Party platform. The Protecting our Security and Saving our Planet section on page 42 discusses climate change.
Back to The Candidates and Climate Change: A Guide to Key Policy Positions
Appendix: Candidates’ Climate- and Energy-Related Policy Positions