President Biden described the climate provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), signed into law in 2022, as “the most aggressive action ever, ever, ever to confront the climate crisis”. The Nature Conservancy described the act as “the most ambitious funding ever for tackling climate change”. The US Green Building Council called it “the largest climate legislation in US history”.
The reliably hyperbolic Paul Krugman wrote an op-ed about the IRA for the New York Times entitled 'Did the Democrats Just Save Civilisation?' He called the IRA bill “a very big deal. The act isn’t, by itself, enough to avert climate disaster. But it’s a huge step in the right direction and sets the stage for more action in the years ahead”.
Alas, the best laid plans of mice and men can still go wrong: Donald J. Trump won the elections. In a whirlwind of executive orders, President Trump took a sledgehammer to the climate change agenda (here, here and here) that played such a central role in the Biden administration.
Soon after winning the elections, President-elect Donald Trump named Elon Musk to a role aimed at creating a more efficient Government as lead of a newly created Department of Government Efficiency. Trump said that DOGE "will pave the way for my Administration to dismantle Government Bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures and restructure Federal Agencies".
The receipts are beginning to come in, courtesy of DOGE. From the evidence flooding in, environmental NGOs constitute a key plank
Discussion
Comments
This week across the site:
To join in with the discussion please make a donation to the Daily Sceptic.
Profanity and abuse will be removed and may lead to a permanent ban.
A giant financial scam aimed at vote-buying and perpetrated by parasitical and megalomaniac “philanthropists” to further their own visions at public expense.
“The idea was to get competent action going through people who had expertise and knew what they were talking about.”
The people at the top, the perpetrators, certainly knew what they were talking about, but it was total spin.
Great article, well researched. Cut all government funding to NGOs by law. Take any governance duties these organisations perform back to actual elected governments, and make them do the job they were elected to do. Transparently audit where NGOs get their money from.
I agree, but remember why QUANGOs were formed in the first place. The idea was to get competent action going through people who had expertise and knew what they were talking about. The average MP does not fit that description. QUANGOs have become corrupt, complacent, and incompetent because there are no sanctions on them for corruption, complacency, and incompetence. Take the climate change committee: many of its members are directly in commission to the climate industry. But pointing that out amounts to pettifogging when people are trying to save the planet. You can fill your boots if you get a model like that going. Ask any government arms contractor. The more wars the better. Likewise for Pinchbeck and Co. The more ‘hottest days ever’ the richer they get.
Quangos were created to distance ministers from their decisions. It’s politicians who are our problem. Lazy, lying, feckless, arrogant, corrupt. In the main.
Explains why they so loved being in the EU.
Yep, not my fault gov’nor it was that lot what done it.
Shocking levels of corruption. Brent Efron should be gaoled, along with a host of other duplicitous chancers.
“Inflation”, “Reduction” and “Act” – Three-word salad and great green rip-off.
As Biden is so pro Ireland do you think that creating an Act that is referred to as “IRA” was deliberate?
He probably thought of it recalling his days playing for the Black n Tans.