Whitehouse wants to ‘reassure’ the world at climate conference

By Emma Dumain | 11/08/2024 06:45 AM EST

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse said much of the U.S. is still “committed to steering the planet away from climate catastrophe.”

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse rides an escalator.

Senate Budget Chair Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) said he will attend this year's United Nations climate conference and seek to assuage allies. J. Scott Applewhite/AP

The final U.N. climate summit of the Biden era is due to kick off next week amid gloom from many in the environmental community over the election of Donald Trump.

But a top Democrat will be there to “reassure the international community that large swaths of the U.S. remain committed to steering the planet away from climate catastrophe.”

This pledge from Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), the chair of the Senate Budget Committee who has used his gavel to link climate change to economic calamity, comes days after Trump’s resounding victory and with Republicans on track to retake control of Congress.

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It also comes as green advocates fear the new balance of power in Washington will lead to a rollback of environmental regulations and the end of climate leadership on the world stage.

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