Trump Reportedly Changes His Mind About Paris Accord, Will Not Pull Out Of Climate Change Agreement
Donald Trump reportedly changed his mind about the Paris climate accord, with a report claiming that the president has backed off his vow to pull out of the worldwide commitment to reduce carbon emissions and address climate change.
Trump had said during his campaign that he would back out of the Paris climate deal as president, and followed through this summer in announcing that the United States would pull out of the deal. That has now apparently changed, with European Commissioner for Climate Action and Energy Miguel Arias Cañete telling the Wall Street Journal on Saturday that the U.S. will now only review the terms of the deal instead of backing out completely.
The White House quickly denied the reports, saying that Trump was sticking to his plan to pull out of the deal.
“There has been no change in the United States’ position on the Paris agreement,” said Deputy Press Secretary Lindsay Walters, via the New York Post. “As the president has made abundantly clear, the United States is withdrawing unless we can re-enter on terms that are more favorable to our country.”
But Trump has shown a tendency to contradict statements that come from the White House press arm, so there remains a great deal of uncertainty about what will really happen with the deal. So far, Trump has not spoken on the matter personally.
Trump plans to pull from Paris climate agreement despite report that administration was softening, White House says https://t.co/FAO7Mb7sAM pic.twitter.com/kxFUgSyPYl
— CNN (@CNN) September 16, 2017
White House rejects U-turn on Paris climate accord as EU official suggests softening of Trump's stance https://t.co/IRaRCbddfa
— Blackfriars GIB (@GibInsurance) September 17, 2017
Though reversing the decision to pull out of the Paris climate accord would be a surprise from the White House, it would not be first time in recent days that Trump has gone back on campaign promises. After vowing to dismantle the so-called “Dreamer” program that delayed deportation on undocumented young people who were brought to the United States by parents as young children, Trump went back on that promise and worked with Democratic leadership on a deal to save the program in exchange for more funding for border security.
The move earned Trump quite a bit of criticism from some of his supporters, with Breitbart News even dubbing him “Amnesty Don” for his support of the Dreamer program.
Going back on the decision to pull out of the Paris accord and striking a deal on the Dreamer program would show Trump moving further from the influence of former chief strategist Steve Bannon, who was influential in both the decision to scrap the climate deal and on cracking down on illegal immigration.
[Featured Image by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images]
