Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) take part in the first night of the Democratic presidential debate on June 26, 2019 in Miami, Florida. Joe Raedle / Getty Images
The dangers of working shoulder-to-shoulder in a meat processing plant have come to the forefront as the novel coronavirus has exposed the fragility of the meat industry's supply chain. Factory farming is also resource intensive, leading to deforestation and fueling the climate crisis. It also accounts for 99 percent of the meat that Americans consume.
<p>Last week, Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) joined Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ) to co-sponsor a bill to put an end to factory farming, as <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/496661-booker-renews-push-to-phase-out-factory-farming-by-2040-after-pandemic-hits" target="_blank">The Hill</a> reported.</p><p>The <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/factory-farming-cory-booker-2641652004.html" target="_self">Farm System Reform Act</a> was first proposed by Booker in December. It aims to put a stop to any new factory farms and the monopolistic practices in the industry. It would hold concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFO) responsible for their environmental impact. Warren agreed to co-sponsor the bill after several incidents of unsafe working conditions and outbreaks of COVID-19 in the meatpacking industry, according to <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/elizabeth-warren-cory-booker-join-forces-bill-ban-most-factory-farming-2040-1502699" target="_blank">Newsweek</a>. Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) is also co-sponsoring the effort and has introduced companion legislation to the House.</p>
<p>"For years, regulators looked the other way while giant multinational corporations crushed competition in the agriculture sector and seized control over key markets," Warren said in a statement, as <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/elizabeth-warren-cory-booker-join-forces-bill-ban-most-factory-farming-2040-1502699" target="_blank">Newsweek</a> reported. "The COVID-19 crisis will make it easier for Big Ag to get even bigger, gobble up smaller farms, and lead to fewer choices for consumers."</p><p>The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed the tight control that a handful of companies have on the entire meat supply chain. As Booker's office noted in a <a href="https://www.booker.senate.gov/news/press/as-pandemic-exposes-major-weaknesses-in-meatpacking-industry-sen-warren-rep-khanna-cosponsor-sen-bookers-farm-system-reform-act-to-fix-broken-system" target="_blank">statement</a>, "four companies control nearly 85 percent of the US beef market. Pork and chicken supply are similarly consolidated. Such concentration makes the food chain extremely fragile."</p>
<p>As <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/496661-booker-renews-push-to-phase-out-factory-farming-by-2040-after-pandemic-hits" target="_blank">The Hill</a> reported, the legislation directly targets multinational meat producing giants, like Smithfield Foods, Tyson Foods and JBS, all of which had severe coronavirus outbreaks among workers in the last month. Those outbreaks have led to fears of a meat shortage in the U.S., as Costco and Kroger have limited how much beef customers can buy, and some Wendy's chains ran out of hamburger patties.</p><p>In response to the shuttered meat processing facilities, President Trump used the Defense Production Act to keep plants with outbreaks open despite the risks for employees, who often work side-by-side.</p>
<p>However, Booker noted that the problems in the meat industry existed well before the coronavirus pandemic.</p><p>"Our food system was not broken by the pandemic and it was not broken by independent family farmers. It was broken by large, multinational corporations like Tyson, Smithfield, and JBS that, because of their buying power and size, have undue influence over the marketplace and over public policy," Booker said in a <a href="https://www.booker.senate.gov/news/press/as-pandemic-exposes-major-weaknesses-in-meatpacking-industry-sen-warren-rep-khanna-cosponsor-sen-bookers-farm-system-reform-act-to-fix-broken-system" target="_blank">statement</a>. "That undue influence was on full display with President Trump's recent executive order prioritizing meatpacker profits over the health and safety of workers."</p><p>Under the Farm System Reform Act, the largest CAFOs would be phased out entirely by 2040. Medium and small-sized operations would not be prohibited, although voluntary buyouts would be offered for farmers who want to cease factory farming, as <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/elizabeth-warren-cory-booker-join-forces-bill-ban-most-factory-farming-2040-1502699" target="_blank">Newsweek</a> reported. The bill would also invest $100 billion over ten years to help CAFO owners transition to more sustainable forms of agriculture.</p><p>"Giant meatpackers cannot be permitted to continue to profit off of the labor of family farmers, consolidating the food industry to the point that our supply chain is threatened," said Khanna, as <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/496661-booker-renews-push-to-phase-out-factory-farming-by-2040-after-pandemic-hits" target="_blank">The Hill</a> reported. "Congress must step in to ensure an honest market, or risk losing another historic industry to the hands of big corporations."</p>
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U.S. Sen. Cory Booker speaking with attendees at the 2019 California Democratic Party State Convention at the George R. Moscone Convention Center in San Francisco, California on June 1. Gage Skidmore / Flickr / CC BY-SA 2.0
New Jersey senator and presidential hopeful Cory Booker put forth the Farm System Reform Act of 2019, in recognition of the environmental impact of industrial agriculture, which would put a stop to any new factory farms, as The Hill reported.
<p>The bill will reform the agriculture system by breaking up monopolistic practices in the industry and holding large corporate farms accountable for the environmental impacts of their practices, according to <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/474685-booker-proposes-moratorium-on-expanding-large-factory-farms" target="_blank">The Hill</a>.</p>
<p>The proposal takes particular aim at <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/factory-farming" rel="noopener noreferrer">factory farms</a>, or concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs), which are notorious for their detrimental environmental impacts, as well as the inhumane treatment of animals. Not only would the bill ban any new CAFOs, but it requires phasing existing ones out by 2040, according to the <a href="https://whistleblower.org/blog/senate-bill-to-overhaul-concentrated-animal-feeding-operations/" target="_blank">Government Accountability Project</a>. The bill will allocate $100 billion over a decade to entice farmers who want to transition out of running CAFOs.</p>
<p>CAFOs are known to generate an enormous amount of manure and waste, which frequently contaminates nearby <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/groundwater" rel="noopener noreferrer">groundwater</a>. They are also known to give farmers little freedom to change since farmers are often handcuffed by binding contracts with large corporations. The Department of Agriculture defines a CAFO as having 1,000 cattle, 700 dairy cows, 2,500 pigs, 125,000 chickens or 82,000 laying hens, as <a href="https://modernfarmer.com/2019/12/cory-booker-announces-legislation-to-scale-back-factory-farms/" target="_blank">Modern Farmer</a> reported. </p>
<p>Sen. Cory Booker's proposal aims to hold corporations responsible for pollution and other harm caused by their factory farm suppliers, even though the factory farms are independently owned and in a contract with the large corporations, according to <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/474685-booker-proposes-moratorium-on-expanding-large-factory-farms" target="_blank">The Hill</a>.</p>
<p>"Our independent family farmers and ranchers are continuing to be squeezed by large, multinational corporations that, because of their buying power and size, run roughshod over the marketplace. We need to fix the broken system – that means protecting family farmers and ranchers and holding corporate integrators responsible for the harm they are causing," said Booker, in a <a href="https://www.booker.senate.gov/?p=press_release&id=1036" target="_blank">statement</a> put out by his office. "Large factory farms are harmful to rural communities, public health, and the environment and we must immediately begin to transition to a more sustainable and humane system."</p>
<p>Booker's <a href="https://www.booker.senate.gov/?p=press_release&id=1036" target="_blank">statement</a> cited data from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention that found large CAFOs produce as much as 1.4 billion tons of waste each year, but don't need to maintain a waste treatment facility. Their steady dramatic increase in numbers recently put rural communities at risk of severe environmental hazards and threatens the viability of family farms.</p>
<p>Furthermore, the crowded conditions of livestock means antibiotics have been overused, leading to the spread of <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/antibiotic-resistance" rel="noopener noreferrer">antibiotic resistant bacteria</a>. That phenomenon pushed the American Public Health Association to urge federal, state and local governments as well as <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/public-health" rel="noopener noreferrer">public health</a> agencies to impose a moratorium on all new and expanding CAFOs last month, according to Booker's <a href="https://www.booker.senate.gov/?p=press_release&id=1036" target="_blank">statement</a>.</p>
<p>"Senator Booker's Farm System Reform Act pushes back on the concentration of animal production and the devastating impact that has had on our rural communities," said Randy Dugger, Indiana Farmers Union Vice President, in a <a href="https://www.booker.senate.gov/?p=press_release&id=1036" target="_blank">statement</a>. "Independent family farmers deserve an opportunity to be prosperous again. By providing fairness and transparency in the market, along with a significant investment to help those trapped in a broken system to get out, this bill can make a huge difference."</p>
<p>The bill also calls for restoring country-of-origin labeling for <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/beef" rel="noopener noreferrer">beef</a> and pork and expand to <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/dairy" rel="noopener noreferrer">dairy</a> products. It would tighten labeling regulations so consumers know where meat was grown, slaughtered and processed, which would stop the Department of Agriculture from labeling imported meat as "Product of USA." Currently, meat grown, slaughtered and processed in Brazil, but packaged in the USA can be labeled as Product of USA, as <a href="https://modernfarmer.com/2019/12/cory-booker-announces-legislation-to-scale-back-factory-farms/" target="_blank">Modern Farmer</a> reported. </p>
<p>"I have seen first-hand how hard it is to challenge the multinational corporations who control the meat industry," said Mike Callicrate, a Kansas rancher in a <a href="https://www.booker.senate.gov/?p=press_release&id=1036" target="_blank">press release</a>. "Farmers and ranchers need a marketplace that compensates them fairly and Senator Booker's Farm System Reform Act is a big step in the right direction. Things like country of origin labeling on meat, updates to the Packers and Stockyards Act, and resources to get folks out of a system that is bankrupting them will make a big difference."</p>
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Hundreds of activists gathered outside the CNN studios at 30 Hudson Yards where a Town Hall on Climate Policy was held on Sept. 4. Erik McGregor / LightRocket / Getty Images
For the first time, Democratic contenders for President participated in a town hall solely focused on the climate crisis. For more than seven hours last night, 10 candidates fielded questions from an audience of Democratic voters and from CNN's moderators.
<p>After a summer of record <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/heat-waves">heat waves</a>, <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/wildfires" rel="noopener noreferrer">wildfires</a> and ice melt, and on the heels of <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/hurricane-dorian" rel="noopener noreferrer">Hurricane Dorian</a> stalling over the Bahamas and dropping record rainfall, there were no longer softball questions about whether or not human-induced climate change is real. Instead, questions touched on many aspects of environmental damage, not just from <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/coal" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">coal</a> and cars, but also from farming, industry, human migration, adaptation, deforestation, trade, the food system and the racial and economic divide in the face of a changing climate, amongst several other topics.</p>
<p>Throughout the night, the candidates faced some straight forward questions from the moderators about light bulbs and plastic straws; the tough questions came from young people in the audience, as <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/live/2019/democrats-climate-town-hall" target="_blank">The New York Times</a> pointed out. In fact, <a href="https://twitter.com/i/status/1169402501470121989" target="_blank">one of the questions</a> seemed to rattle former Vice President Joe Biden. </p>
<p>"How can we trust you to hold these corporations and executives accountable for their crimes against humanity when we know that tomorrow you are holding a high-dollar fund-raiser hosted by Andrew Goldman, a fossil fuel executive?" asked Isaac Larsen, a 27-year-old Ph.D. candidate at Northwestern. </p>
<p>Biden then used an outsized portion of his 40-minutes to explain away his connections to Andrew Goldman, a co-founder of a liquid natural gas company. Biden was also <a href="https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/climate-crisis-town-hall-august-2019/h_34cc6c1ce9c1ca32ec6227e75f3e6931" target="_blank">asked by a 19-year-old</a> how her generation can trust him to prioritize their future over <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/big-business" rel="noopener noreferrer">big business</a>. </p><p>A high school student <a href="https://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2019/09/04/julian-castro-fracking-cnn-climate-crisis-town-hall-2020-vpx-sot.cnn" target="_blank">asked Julian Castro</a> why he should be trusted when he supported fracking as mayor of San Antonio. Similarly, a college student asked Amy Klobuchar if she could actually stand up to the beef and dairy industry when they have so much influence in government and, in particular, Minnesota, which she represents in the Senate.</p>
<div id="449e4" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="41J58Q1578578342"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-twitter-tweet-id="1169403430160482306" data-partner="rebelmouse"><div style="margin:1em 0">https://t.co/xCe6YrKpiZ</div> — darien DignityRespectKindness (DRK) (@darien DignityRespectKindness (DRK))<a href="https://twitter.com/EQVILIBRIS/statuses/1169403430160482306">1567642478.0</a></blockquote></div><p>Several of the candidates took exception to the questions that the moderators asked as too simplistic and too much an echo of conservative talking points. For example, being asked if the US should rejoin the Paris Climate Accord, Sen. Cory Booker bristled, ""I'm sorry. That is, like, a cost of entry even to run for president or talk about the presidency."<br></p><p>Elizabeth Warren was exasperated by Chris Cuomo's question about whether the government should regulate light bulb uses. She pointed out that it is a conservative talking point to the put the onus on the consumer rather than polluting industries, as <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2019/09/give-me-a-break-elizabeth-warren-just-cut-through-the-dumbest-climate-argument/" target="_blank">Mother Jones</a> reported. </p><p> "Oh come on, give me a break," <a href="https://youtu.be/MdbLtrnLkO8" target="_blank">Warren said to Cuomo</a>. "This is exactly what the fossil fuel industry wants us to be talking about. That's what they want us to talk about: This is your problem." </p><p>And, when Sen. Bernie Sanders was asked by Anderson Cooper if he would reinstate the light bulb requirement, he simply answered, "<a href="https://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2019/09/05/bernie-sanders-duh-trump-policy-lightbulbs-climate-town-hall-sot-vpx.cnn" target="_blank">Duh</a>!"</p>
<p>Some other notable moments came from Andrew Yang who offered creative solutions and knew how much of a carbon-tax he would like to levy. He also championed changing the calculation of gross domestic product <a href="https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/climate-crisis-town-hall-august-2019/h_4d415f1885140796a7419890dc57348f" target="_blank">to include environmental factors</a>. "Let's upgrade it with a new score card that includes our environmental sustainability and our goals," he said.</p><p>Sen. Kamala Harris said she would direct the Department of Justice to investigate oil and gas companies whose practices "are causing harm and death in communities. And there has been no accountability," she <a href="https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/climate-crisis-town-hall-august-2019/h_d40eef6688c0b2751777f6a0d259c095" target="_blank">said</a>.</p><p>Sanders boasted about his $16 trillion spending plan as the most serious approach to a mounting crisis. "We are fighting for the survival of the planet Earth, our only planet. How is this not a major priority?" Sanders asked during the town hall.</p><p>Sanders also unequivocally opposed nuclear power plants. "It doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me to add more dangerous waste to this country and the world when we don't know how to get rid of what we have now," he said, as the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/live/2019/democrats-climate-town-hall" target="_blank">The New York Times</a> reported.</p>
<p>That differed from several other candidates. Both Andrew Yang and Sen. Booker championed nuclear power as a necessary ingredient for net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 plan. Harris worried about waste, but said she would leave it up to the states to decide, according to the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/live/2019/democrats-climate-town-hall" target="_blank">The New York Times</a>.</p>
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Democratic Candidates Spent 13 Minutes on Climate Change in Second Presidential Debate
01 August 2019
Politics
NPR / YouTube screenshot
Democratic presidential candidates spent 13 minutes on climate change in the second presidential debate Wednesday evening in Detroit — one more minute than the 12 spent on Tuesday evening, according to a Washington Post tally.
<p><br/></p>
<p>Washington governor Jay Inslee, whose campaign has centered around the issue, kicked off the discussion by centering climate change as "all the issues that we Democrats care about. It is health. It is national security. It is our economy." Sen. Cory Booker (NJ) joined Inslee in targeting former Vice President Joe Biden's plan to continue <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/fossil-fuels" rel="noopener noreferrer">fossil fuel</a> use and Booker calling out Biden's brag that he will rejoin the <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/tag/paris-agreement" rel="noopener noreferrer">Paris agreement</a>. "Nobody should get applause for rejoining the Paris climate accords," Booker said. "That is kindergarten." As Robinson Meyer writes in The Atlantic, tech mogul Andrew Yang's argument that a universal basic income is the best way to mitigate climate impacts "is not a good response to losing your house to <a href="http://www.ecowatch.com/tag/sea-level-rise" rel="noopener noreferrer">higher sea levels</a>."</p>
<p>As reported by <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2019/08/pretty-good-democratic-debate-about-climate-change/595276/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Atlantic</a>:</p><blockquote>Climate change is a sprawling, scary, cinematic problem, and its remedies involve the less-than-inspiring technical undergirding of society: <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2017/08/why-cities-flood/538251/" target="_blank">stormwater management</a>, the electrical grid, <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2018/12/ocasio-cortez-green-new-deal-winning-climate-strategy/576514/" target="_blank">dirt</a>. And dirt management will never be as engrossing as, say, Medicare for All. The party may also benefit, in a sort of shallow but undeniable way, from its monopoly on climate concern. Since any Democrat would do more to fight climate change than the current president, what's the point of airing dirty laundry about it in public?</blockquote><blockquote>"We have all put out highly similar visions on climate," South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg said on Tuesday night. "We will deal with climate if and only if we win the presidency."</blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">A new poll shows that 96% of Democratic voters want leaders to prioritize climate action and 91% want universal health care like <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MedicareForAll?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MedicareForAll</a>! The people want bold ideas to solve our toughest problems, which is why so many progressives won in 2018! <a href="https://t.co/nLbG4SMgm6">https://t.co/nLbG4SMgm6</a></p>— Pramila Jayapal (@PramilaJayapal) <a href="https://twitter.com/PramilaJayapal/status/1123633574161334272?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 1, 2019</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<p><strong>For a deeper dive:</strong><br/></p><p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2019/08/01/more-electability-than-foreign-policy-second-debate-topics-by-numbers/?utm_term=.46407b9751a0" target="_blank">Washington Post</a>, <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2019/08/joe-bidens-climate-plan-melted-during-the-debate/" target="_blank">Mother Jones</a>, <a href="https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/7/31/20749498/democratic-debate-climate-change-cory-booker-paris" target="_blank">Vox</a>, <a href="https://komonews.com/news/local/inslee-preaches-climate-change-at-latest-democratic-debate-gets-big-reaction" target="_blank">KOMO</a>, <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2019/08/pretty-good-democratic-debate-about-climate-change/595276/" target="_blank">The Atlantic</a>, <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2020-election/here-s-why-democrats-debate-over-issues-mattered-n1038051" target="_blank">NBC</a>, <a href="https://theweek.com/articles/856262/jay-inslee-just-wants-save-world-from-climate-change" target="_blank">The Week</a>. Commentary: <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2019/08/andrew-yangs-horrific-debate-answer-climate-change/595267/" target="_blank">The Atlantic, Robinson Meyer analysis</a>, <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2019/07/31/opinions/jay-inslee-2020-witnessed-climate-change-devastation/index.html" target="_blank">CNN, Jay Inslee op-ed</a>)<br/></p><p><em>For more </em><a href="http://ecowatch.com/climate-change-news/" target="_blank"><em>climate change</em></a><em> and </em><a href="http://ecowatch.com/business/renewables/" target="_blank"><em>clean energy</em></a><em> news, you can follow Climate Nexus on </em><em><a href="https://twitter.com/ClimateNexus" target="_blank">Twitter</a> </em><em>and </em><a href="https://www.facebook.com/ClimateNexus/" target="_blank"><em>Facebook</em></a><em>, and sign up for daily </em><a href="http://climatenexus.us4.list-manage1.com/subscribe?u=d1f5797e59060083034310930&id=7c84c08aaa" target="_blank"><em>Hot News</em></a><em>.</em></p>From Your Site Articles
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Scott Pruitt—Donald Trump's controversial pick to head the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)—is under fire for his supposed ties to a nonprofit controlled by billionaire oil tycoons, Charles and David Koch.
POLITICO has received a copy of a letter sent to Pruitt that was signed by six Democratic senators on the Environment and Public Works Committee. The letter raises questions about the Oklahoma attorney general's director status at a nonprofit called the Rule of Law Defense Fund that accepted $175,000 from Freedom Partners, the political arm of the Koch brothers' network.
Freedom Partners has been described as a "dark money umbrella group," likened to a secret bank that disburses contributions from wealthy conservatives.
The senators are requesting names of donors, meeting information, internal emails and other details related to Pruitt's leading role at the Defense Fund, according to POLITICO.
The letter was signed by Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island, Jeff Merkley of Oregon, Cory Booker of New Jersey, Ed Markey of Massachusetts, Ben Cardin of Maryland and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who caucuses with Democrats.
As POLITICO noted, the Defense Fund is allowed to keep donors secret since it is organized under a special section of the tax code. However, in 2014, it received $175,000 from Freedom Partners.
The letter calls that contribution into question and said that Pruitt's work with the Defense Fund is "troubling," since he may be too close to the very fossil fuel companies he is supposed to regulate as Trump's EPA chief.
Trump Picks Scott Pruitt, 'Puppet of the Fossil Fuel Industry,' to Head EPA https://t.co/BC8ZCp8qc8 @GreenpeaceAustP @Green_Europe— EcoWatch (@EcoWatch)1481287229.0
The Defense Fund is an offshoot of the Republican Attorneys General Association, itself a group that has deep ties to the fossil fuel industry. A December 2014 New York Times exposé revealed an "unprecedented, secretive alliance" and coordination between Big Oil and the association.
Trump's appointment of Pruitt was met with unprecedented criticism by environmental and health organizations nationwide, being described as a "puppet" of the fossil fuel industry. In 2014, Pruitt was caught sending letters on state government letterheads to President Obama and federal agency heads asserting that the EPA was overestimating the air pollution from drilling for natural gas in Oklahoma. Turns out, the letter was written by lawyers for one of the state's largest oil and gas companies, Devon Energy.
According to POLITICO, the six senators are highlighting Pruitt's links to fossil fuel interests as part of a larger effort to turn moderate senators against his confirmation.
"The confirmation process, starting with your responses to committee questions before your hearing, is an opportunity for you to dispel the notion that the advocacy you have undertaken on environmental issues as Attorney General of Oklahoma has been directed by and for the benefit of the energy industry," the letter states.
As Oklahoma's top legal officer, Pruitt has waged numerous legal wars against the EPA and President Obama's environmental regulations, including the president's signature Clean Power Plan. Trump said Pruitt is "highly respected" and will counter the EPA's "anti-energy agenda that has destroyed millions of jobs."