The Green New Deal

The Green New Deal to Combat Climate Change and Create High-Paying Jobs, with Full Employment and a Federal Jobs Guarantee

In order to combat global climate change, Peter Mathews strongly supports the transition to a 100% renewable energy system that is carbon-free. In Congress and outside of Congress, he will work to galvanize support for building a fully modernized electrical grid by 2030. Peter believes renewable fuels must be produced to achieve and accomplish our environmental and energy security goals, so we can move beyond fossil fuels in the fight against Global Warming/Climate Change/Climate Disruption. By transitioning to electric vehicles, sustainable home heating, rooftop solar generation, and converting the power grid to zero-emissions energy sources, Peter believes we can and must be 100% free of fossil fuels by 2030. Here are some of the reasons why:

The U.S. Government's Fourth National Climate Assessment report, released in November 2018, warns of a damaged and shrinking U.S. economy. The 1,656 page assessment "describes the effect of Climate Change on the economy, health and environment, including record wildfires in California, crop failures in the Midwest and crumbling infrastructure in the South. It says that American exports and supply chains could be disrupted, agricultural yields could fall to 1980s level by mid-century, and fire season could spread to the Southeast... Climate Change could slash up to a 10th of gross domestic products by 2100, more than double the losses of the Great Recession a decade ago." (nytimes.com, Nov. 23, 2018, "U.S. Climate Report Warns of Damaged Environment and Shrinking Economy", by Coral Davenport and Kendra Pierre-Louis).

Therefore, Peter recognizes the relationship between economic stability and environmental sustainability. Peter says, "It’s time to immediately and fully implement the Green New Deal. This will require a transformation that brings a measure of structural change in our political and economic systems in order to create public and private sector jobs that save our climate, environment, economy, and our very lives. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt faced a similar challenge in the Great Depression and overcame it with a New Deal for America. We face a similar and monumental challenge with Climate Change and must overcome it with the Green New Deal.

Right now, our economy, government, and politics are controlled by big corporations, including fossil fuel oil, gas, and coal companies whose profits are dependent on the continuation of Climate Change. Most of our politicians are bought by them through campaign contributions, and influenced by them through moneyed lobbying, including 47th Congressional District area politicians (opensecrets.org). Peter Mathews refuses corporate money for his campaign and has signed the "No Fossil Fuel Pledge", because he knows this corrupt arrangement benefits the few, the 1 Percenters, but is detrimental to our planet and all its inhabitants. The effects of Climate Change are life-threatening, and are especially already felt by low-income communities, both in the U.S. and globally. In California, places like Imperial Beach, San Diego County, Long Beach, Pacifica, San Francisco, and many more California coastal areas are being affected and threatened by erosion and rising sea levels. Global Warming/Climate Change is also devastating California with drought and uncontrollable wildfires. Rather than continuing to depend on this system that sees Climate Change as inherent to economic life, the Green New Deal believes that we must rationally, scientifically, morally, ethically, and radically address Climate Change. This is the path towards a more equitable economy with increased employment, widespread financial security, and freedom for all.

The U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) special report on global warming released in October 2018 says that we have to limit global warming to a maximum of 1.5 degrees Celsius in order to limit the dire effect of Climate Change. And we only have until 2030 to do so. Global net human caused emissions of carbon dioxide would have to fall by about 45% from 2010 levels by 2030, reaching net zero around 2050. The IPCC report finds that in order to limit Global Warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius would require "rapid and far reaching" transitions in land, energy, industry, buildings, transport, and cities. The activities of human beings have already warmed the planet around 1 degree Celsius since the preindustrial era, which is defined by the IPCC as the second half of the 19th century. With the current rate of warming, the Earth would reach the 1.5 degree Celsius threshold between 2030 and 2052. (climatecentral.org).

Climate Change is the single biggest national security threat for the United States and the single biggest threat to worldwide human civilization. The effects of Global Warming/Climate Change/Climate Disruption can be hard to predict and self-reinforcing. We need to avoid this worldwide multi-faceted crisis by fighting for environmental and climate justice by mobilizing our population and our government. We must begin this battle immediately by making the United States a leader in the actions taken globally and locally. Outrageously, President Trump has withdrawn the U.S. from the Internationally agreed-upon Paris Climate Agreement. Send Peter Mathews to Congress to help reverse this by reinstating the United States in the Paris Climate Agreement once again. Peter Mathews has been a leader in the fight for the Green New Deal and has demanded support for Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's call for a House Select Committee on the Green New Deal (with full subpoena and legislative powers), unlike his main primary election opponent.