The last time a sitting president left the White House after only one term was in 1992. President George Bush Sr., who only a few months earlier enjoyed support rates of over ninety percent in the polls, was defeated by a young and charismatic Democratic candidate - Bill Clinton. James Carville, Clinton's election strategist, knew very well what drives the American public to the polls. "It's the economy, idiot," he explained to the campaigners and ordered them to focus on the state of the American economy. This slogan secured Clinton the presidency and became a currency of language that summarizes the elections in the USA from then until today.
In January 2021 it will be President Donald Trump who leaves the White House after only one term. If Clinton won the presidency thanks to his economic plan, then it can be argued that Joe Biden will also enter the White House thanks to his climate plan. To understand why, we need to go back four years, to another Clinton family campaign. That time it was Hilary who ran for the presidency and her loss ensured Biden the victory in the current round.
Hillary Clinton lost the presidency even though she almost got it Three million more votes From Donald Trump. The American electoral system is decided by electors and not percentages, which means that a president can enter the White House even if the majority of the people did not elect him. Trump's victory over Hillary was achieved by merit Eighty thousand votes who managed to rake next to him in three states - Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. In other words, Hillary lacked a fraction of a percent of the vote in each of the three states to become the 45th president. These votes, however, did not go to Trump, but to a third (and almost unknown in Israel) candidate: Jill Stein. In 2016, Jill Stein represented the Green Party, which traditionally runs presidential candidates, and thanks to its focus on climate issues garnered About a percent of all votes in the US, most of them came from the democratic camp.
Biden saw and drew conclusions. Throughout the campaign, he emphasized the his commitment to the climate crisis and promised that the act the first one His role as president will be to return the United States to the Paris Agreement on climate change and that under his leadership the United States will become a world leader in dealing with the climate crisis. Biden also pledged that by the year 2050 The US economy will be based on 100 percent renewable energy and zero carbon emissions. And it succeeded. The Green Party candidate, Howie Hawkins, received less than a fifth of the votes Stein garnered four years ago. Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin were colored blue and Biden became the 46th president of the United States.
Adopt a climate vision
Biden's message was quite simple and very American: for a century the USA has been leading the world thanks to the innovation and courage of its citizens. In order to maintain its position as the leader of the free world even in the 21st century, the US must adopt an ambitious climate vision. Therefore, every time Trump talked about the harm to the workers of the polluting energy industries, Biden talked about the increase in the number of new jobs in the renewable energy industry. When Trump talked about coal and oil, Biden talked about wind, water and solar. When Trump engaged in intimidation, Biden assumed An ambitious economic plan, which promises to create hundreds of thousands of new jobs through an investment of trillions of dollars in green infrastructure, sustainable development and renewable energies.
And what about us?
Biden's election marks the beginning of change in the US and ensures global cooperation in dealing with the climate crisis. In Israel, unfortunately, it seems that the message has not yet penetrated. Unlike most countries of the Western world, our Knesset has not enacted a climate law, there is still no national plan to deal with the climate crisis, and there is no central body entrusted with the development and implementation of a national climate strategy. This state of affairs is particularly serious because the Middle East is identified as a global hot spot in terms of warming - that is, it is an area that will be affected to a greater extent by climate change.
Corona as an opportunity
In the midst of the greatest global crisis humanity has ever experienced, World War II, Sir Winston Churchill was asked what he envisioned for Britain in the post-war years. In typical Churchillian fashion, the British Prime Minister replied "a good crisis should never be missed". Churchill meant that the state of emergency should be used to take bold action that would ensure Britain's prosperity for many years to come. Churchill's words are particularly relevant today, when humanity is facing another global crisis - the corona virus.
Despite its strength, the Corona crisis is only a precursor to what we can expect from the climate crisis. Many countries have recognized that the Corona crisis is an opportunity for a paradigm shift that will ensure sustainable growth. The European Union, for example, has adopted Economic plan for green growth in the amount of 1.8 trillion euros aimed at rebuilding the European economy. The European rescue plan achieves these goals through large-scale investment in green infrastructure, renewable energy and environmental technology. These investments will create hundreds of thousands of jobs and ensure Europe's transition from a polluting economy based on old production methods to a clean, advanced and prosperous economy in the 21st century.
Canada, Europe, UK, Germany, France, New Zealand and Biden's USA are just Some countries who presented green rescue plans. International Monetary Fund, God-OECD AndWorld Bank Call on the rest of the countries to adopt green economic rescue plans as a means of exiting the crisis and ensuring long-term, sustainable and equitable prosperity. Israel must not be left behind. An orderly economic plan to encourage growth in the long term has not yet been presented by the government. In the absence of a budget, it is hard to believe that an economic rescue plan will soon be presented to the government.
However, the political arena in Israel is known as an importer of ideas from American politics and it is possible that in the next elections, whenever they will be, we may see a central party that adopts a green rescue plan as a main part of its platform.
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