"It only took 10 debates, a worldwide pandemic, and the winnowing of the Democratic field down to two men in their late 70s — but on Sunday night, for about 12 minutes, the American public finally got to hear a substantive debate about climate change.

The coronavirus outbreak forced Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden to debate in a strange, glossy CNN studio in Washington, D.C., with their podiums placed a World Health Organization-approved 6 feet apart and no audience but the moderators. Although it was weird seeing the two candidates in what was essentially a television-ready bunker, it was even weirder watching them trying to one-up each other over who would be the better climate champion.

Sanders has long claimed that he has the most ambitious agenda to tackle climate change of any candidate — a $16.3 trillion plan, endorsed by activist groups like the Sunrise Movement, that aims to generate all electricity from renewables by 2030. He wants to ban all fracking and treat fossil-fuel companies like Big Tobacco and “hold them accountable.” Biden, meanwhile, has a more $1.7 trillion plan that involves installing 500,000 electric vehicle charging stations across the country (one of his favorite debate talking points). He wants to invest heavily in research and development into green technology and ban fracking on federal lands. Critics deride Sanders’ pitch as unrealistic and Biden’s as too little to meet the challenge."

Shannon Osaka reports for Grist March 16, 2020. [2]

SEE ALSO:

"Biden, In A First, Says He Opposes All New Fracking" (ClimateWire) [3]