Progressive Dems Unveil Green New Deal: ‘Big Deal for Those Left Behind’

Sen. Ed Markey and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez led lawmakers in a discussion of expansive plan during a press conference

By Connor D. Wolf | February 7, 2019

With the goal of implementing expensive environmental regulations, a group of progressive lawmakers on Thursday unveiled their Green New Deal resolution — something Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) herself referred to as a “green dream.”

Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.)(shown above left) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) (above right) led a group of lawmakers in unveiling the plan during a press conference.

The lawmakers have been discussing the plan for months while working out the details.

The idea is also facing a lot of criticism for being far-reaching and incredibly expensive to taxpayers.

“This is such a watershed moment and I’m so excited that we’re going to transition this country into the future and we’re not going to be dragged behind by our past,” said Ocasio-Cortez, who was elected in the November 2018 midterms.

“I’m so excited by that. I don’t think today is just a big day for our delegation, us as a party or us as a movement, but this is a big day for activists and for front-line communities all over the country. Today is a big day for people who have been left behind.”

Related: Ocasio-Cortez: ‘World Is Gonna End in 12 Years if We Don’t Address Climate Change’

The Green New Deal is a decade-long initiative to create a greenhouse gas-neutral society.

Many scientists theorize that greenhouse gases may be a major contributor to the notion of man-made climate change. The plan is aimed at ensuring economic and environmental “justice” while creating unprecedented levels of prosperity for all.

Those opposed to the plan have expressed concern it would come with unmanageable costs. American Action Forum, a center-right public policy group, and others found that such a plan could cost $5.7 trillion just to invest in renewable energy and storage alone.

That is huge compared to the total national debt — which is $22 trillion.

Related: ‘Green Dream or Whatever They Call It,’ Scoffs Nancy Pelosi, Ahead of Release on Thursday

“Today is a big day for workers in Appalachia,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “Today is a big day for children who have been breathing in dirty air in the South Bronx. Today is a very good day for families who have been enduring [the] injustices of drinking dirty water or who have seen their homes flooded with the rise of sea levels. And today, I think, is a very good day for the economy, the labor movement, the social justice movement, indigenous peoples, and people all over the United States of America.”

The Green New Deal is designed to be expansive, with supporters describing it as a World War II-scale mobilization. The plan includes environmentally friendly efforts to fully rebuild the national infrastructure, restore the natural ecosystems, dramatically expand renewable power generation, overhaul the entire transportation system, upgrade all buildings, jump-start clean manufacturing — and transform agriculture.

Related: Bill Gates Predicts ‘Millions of Deaths’ from Climate Change Before Century’s End

“The ‘Green Raw Deal’ simply takes the failed ideas of socialism and wraps them in a different color,” Alfredo Ortiz, president of the Job Creators Network, said in a statement to LifeZette. “Socialism takes; capitalism creates. America does not want to be like Venezuela and never will be, so long as our political leaders stand up for our ideals.”

“We call on all reasonable members of Congress to reject this madness,” Ortiz added. “It’s time for Democrats, in particular, to restore sanity within their ranks.”

The Green New Deal gets its name from the expansive economic and welfare initiative from the 1930s known as The New Deal. The initiative included a series of programs, public works projects, financial reforms and regulations in response to the Great Depression.

Former President Franklin D. Roosevelt championed The New Deal.

Check out this video:

This piece originally appeared in LifeZette and is used by permission.

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