(CNSNews.com) - Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden said Tuesday that he does not support the Green New Deal, which President Donald Trump pointed out would cost Americans $100 trillion, and Trump said by not doing so, Biden “just lost the radical left.”
During the first presidential debate in Cleveland, Ohio, Fox News host and debate moderator Chris Wallace asked Biden to respond to Trump’s climate change record and talk about Biden’s proposed $2 trillion in green jobs.
WALLACE. You talk about new limits, not abolishing, but new limits on fracking, ending the use of fossil fuels to generate electricity by 2035. Zero net emission of greenhouse gases by 2050. The president says a lot of these things would tank the economy and cost millions of jobs.
BIDEN: He’s absolutely wrong, number one. Number two, if in fact, during our administration, the Recovery Act, I was able to bring down the cost of renewable energy to cheaper than or as cheap as coal and gas and oil. Nobody is going to build another coal-fired plant in America. No one is going to build another oil-fired plant in America. They're going to move to renewable energy.
Number two, We are going to make sure that we are able to take the federal fleet and turn it into a fleet run on electric vehicles, making sure we can do that. We're going to put 500,000 charging stations on all the highways we are going to be building in the future. We're going to build an economy that in fact it's going to provide for the ability for us to take 4 million buildings and make sure that they in fact are weatherized in a way that in fact, they’ll emit significantly less gas and oil because the heat will not be going out.
There's so many things we can do now to create thousands and thousands of jobs. We can get to that zero in terms of energy production by 2035, not only not costing people jobs, creating jobs, creating millions of good paying jobs, not 15 bucks an hour but the prevailing wage by having a new infrastructure that in fact is green.
The first thing I will do, I will rejoin the Paris Accord because with us out of it, look what's happening. It's falling apart. Talk about someone who has no relationship with foreign policy. Brazil, the rainforests of Brazil are being torn down, are being ripped down. More carbon is absorbed in that rainforest than every bit of carbon emitted in the United States. Instead of doing something about that, I would be gathering up and making sure we have the countries of the world coming up with $20 billion to say here's $20 million. Stop tearing down the forest. If you don't, then you're going to have significant economic consequences.
Trump said Biden was “talking about the Green New Deal.”
“It's not $2 billion or 20 billion as you said. It's $100 trillion where they want to rip down buildings and rebuild the buildings. It's the dumbest, most ridiculous, where airplanes are out of business, where two car systems are out, where they want to take out the cows too. You know that's not true either, right? This is a 100 -- that's more money than our country could make 100 years,” the president said.
Biden said the Green New Deal is not his plan, but then almost immediately said, “The Green New Deal will pay for itself as we move forward. We're not going to build plants that in fact are great polluting plants.”
Wallace asked Biden if he supports the Green New Deal, to which Biden replied: “No, I don't support the Green New Deal.”
“Oh, that's a big statement. The means you just lost the radical left,” Trump said.
“I support the Biden plan that I put forward - the Biden plan which is different than what he calls the radical Green New Deal.”
Below is a transcript of the exchange:
WALLACE. You talk about new limits, not abolishing, but new limits on fracking, ending the use of fossil fuels to generate electricity by 2035. Zero net emission of greenhouse gases by 2050. The president says a lot of these things would tank the economy and cost millions of jobs.
BIDEN: He’s absolutely wrong, number one. Number two, if in fact, during our administration, the Recovery Act, I was able to bring down the cost of renewable energy to cheaper than or as cheap as coal and gas and oil. Nobody is going to build another coal-fired plant in America. No one is going to build another oil-fired plant in America. They're going to move to renewable energy.
Number two, We are going to make sure that we are able to take the federal fleet and turn it into a fleet run on electric vehicles, making sure we can do that. We're going to put 500,000 charging stations on all the highways we are going to be building in the future. We're going to build an economy that in fact it's going to provide for the ability for us to take 4 million buildings and make sure that they in fact are weatherized in a way that in fact, they’ll emit significantly less gas and oil because the heat will not be going out.
There's so many things we can do now to create thousands and thousands of jobs. We can get to that zero in terms of energy production by 2035, not only not costing people jobs, creating jobs, creating millions of good paying jobs, not 15 bucks an hour but the prevailing wage by having a new infrastructure that in fact is green.
The first thing I will do, I will rejoin the Paris Accord because with us out of it, look what's happening. It's falling apart. Talk about someone who has no relationship with foreign policy. Brazil, the rainforests of Brazil are being torn down, are being ripped down. More carbon is absorbed in that rainforest than a bit of carbon emitted in the United States. Instead of doing something about that, I would be gathering up and making sure we have the countries of the world coming up with $20 billion to say here's $20 million. Stop tearing down the forest. If you don't, then you're going to have significant economic consequences.
WALLACE: What about the argument, president trump basically says you have to balance environmental interests and economic interests. He's drawn his line.
BIDEN: He hasn't drawn a line. He still, for example, he wants to make sure that methane is not a problem. You can now emit more methane without it being a problem. This is a guy who says you don't have to have mileage standards for automobiles that exist now. This is a guy who says. It's all true. Here's the deal.
TRUMP: He’s talking about the Green New Deal. It's not 2 billion or 20 billion as you said. It's $100 trillion where they want to rip down buildings and rebuild the buildings. It's the dumbest, most ridiculous, where airplanes are out of business, where two-car systems are out, where they want to take out the cows too. You know that's not true either, right? This is a 100 -- that's more money than our country could make 100 years.
WALLACE: Let me. Wait a minute, sir. I have studied your plan. It includes upgrading 4 million buildings, weatherizing 2 million homes over four years, building 1.5 million energy efficient homes. The question becomes, the president is saying, I think some people who support the president would say that sounds like it's going to cost a lot of money and hurt the economy.
BIDEN: what it’s going to do it’s going to create thousands and millions of jobs, good paying jobs.
WALLACE: Let him finish.
BIDEN: He doesn't know how to do that. It's going to create millions of good paying jobs and these tax incentives to people, for people to weatherize which He wants to get rid of it. It's going to make the economy much safer. Look how much we are paying now to deal with hurricanes, deal with -- he said maybe we should drop a nuclear weapon.
TRUMP: I never said that. You made it up.
BIDEN: Here's the deal. We are going to be in a position where we can create hard, hard, good jobs by making sure the environment is clean and we all are in better shape. We spend billions of dollars now, billions of dollars on floods, hurricanes, rising seas. We are in real trouble. Look what's happened just in the midwest with these storms that come through and wipe out entire sections and counties in Iowa. That didn't happen before. Because of global warming, we make up 15% of the world's problem. We in fact -- but the rest of the world, we've got to get them to come along. That's why we have to get back into, back into the Paris Accord.
TRUMP: Why didn't he do it for 47 years? You were vice president. China sends up real dirt into the air. Russia does, India does. They all do. We are supposed to be good and By the way, he made a couple statements. The green new deal is $100 trillion.
BIDEN: That is not my plan. The Green New Deal is not my plan.
TRUMP: Going to rebuild every --
WALLACE: Gentlemen, gentlemen.
TRUMP: He made a statement up about the military. He said I said something about the military. He and his friends made it up and then they went with it. I never said it. He called the military stupid bastards.
BIDEN: I did not.
TRUMP: He said it on tape. He said stupid bastards.
WALLACE: Mr. Vice president.
BIDEN: The final question is, I can't remember which of all his rantings.
WALLACE: I am having a little trouble myself. About the economy and about the question of what it's going to cost.
BIDEN: The economy.
WALLACE: The Green New Deal.
BIDEN: The Green New Deal will pay for itself as we move forward. We're not going to build plants that in fact are great polluting plants.
WALLACE: Do you support the Green New Deal?
BIDEN: No I don't support the Green New Deal.
TRUMP: Oh, that's a big statement. The means you just lost the radical left.
BIDEN: I support the Biden plan that I put forward - the Biden plan which is different than what he calls the radical Green New Deal.