President Obama is continuing his ‘pen and phone’ strategy with latest executive action aimed at helping farmers in rural areas respond to the threats of climate change. The White House is set to announce the creation of seven regional ‘climate hubs’ in Ames, Iowa, Durham, New Hampshire, Raleigh, North Carolina, Fort Collins, Colorado, El Reno, Oklahoma, Corvallis, Oregon, and Las Cruces, New Mexico.
“Administration officials are going to announce today another executive action implemented by the President,” Glenn said on radio this morning. “He is going to unveil the creation of regional climate hubs.”
“Yay,” Pat joked. “How long have we clamored for regional climate hubs?”
On the heels of the Senate’s passage of a long-awaited farm bill, the Obama administration is to announce on Wednesday the creation of seven regional “climate hubs” to help farmers and rural communities respond to the risks of climate change, including drought, invasive pests, fires and floods.
White House officials described the move as one of several executive actions that President Obama will take on climate change without action from Congress.
In substance, the creation of the climate hubs is a limited step, but it is part of a broader campaign by the administration to advance climate policy wherever possible with executive authority. The action is also part of a push to build political support for the administration’s more divisive moves on climate change — in particular, the Environmental Protection Agency’s regulations on coal-fired power plants.
It is unclear how these hubs will be funded, but since it’s an undertaking of the federal government you pretty much guarantee it will cost billions. It is also unclear what kind of job creation will result from the investment, but if it is anything like Obamacare, you can bet Democrats will tout millions of job gains.
“The Administration hasn't provided any information on funding on this yet. But don't worry about that because it will be definite neutral,” Glenn joked. “We're only doing this for the middle class.”
“He's a warrior for the middle class,” Pat interjected. “I don't know if you're aware of that.”
Glenn and Pat are referring to President Obama’s September 2011 proclimation that he is proudly a “warrior for the middle class”:
“He is a warrior for the middle class,” Glenn declared. “And if you can see how he has used his sword on – or ‘for’ the middle class to reduce the size of the population of the middle class, thus giving more opportunity for the remaining middle-class.”
“And [he is] providing room for the lower class who aspire to become middle-class to move up,” Pat added sarcastically. “He's brilliant. He's a warrior.”
Front page image courtesy of the AP