The Democratic National Committee changed course on Friday after the committee voted in favor of accepting donations from the fossil fuel industry. What environmentalists hailed as a breakthrough just months ago after the DNC announced it would ban such donations was quickly overturned after the committee adopted a resolution to reverse such ban.
Under Tom Perez, chairman of the DNC, the resolution, which passed, 30 to 2, “states that the party ‘supports fossil fuel workers’ and will accept donations from ’employers’ political action committees,'” Huffington Post reported.
The original resolution that banned fossil fuel corporate PAC money tied to oil, gas and coal companies was passed just two months ago. But it did continue to allow the DNC to accept individual donations from workers in those industries.
According to the new resolution’s text it: “reaffirms its unwavering and unconditional commitment to the workers, unions and forward-looking employers that power the American economy” and allows the committee to “continue to welcome the longstanding and generous contributions of workers, including those in energy and related industries, who organize and donate to Democratic candidates individually or through their unions’ or employers’ political action committees.”
Christine Pelosi, member of the DNC’s executive committee and daughter of Democratic House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, said she tried to get the committee to remove some language in Perez’s resolution, but was voted down, 28 to 4.
To be clear —> @DNC staff and officers NEVER consulted me on language to reverse my resolution banning corporate fossil fuel PAC money and now said they have to keep the resolution as is because of all the work *we* did. 4 Yes votes; 28 No votes so my motion to ban PAC $ fails.
— (((sfpelosi))) (@sfpelosi) August 10, 2018
According to Huffington Post, Pelosi was trying to get the DNC to “consider a second proposal this month to stop accepting contributions over $200 from individuals who work for the fossil fuel industry to end “the influence of high-paid executives while remaining open to the working class that Democrats aim to champion.”
But as far as Bill McKibbon, climate activist and 350.org co-founder, is concerned, “the issue goes beyond the donations.” He went on to say in a tweet that “at least as drafted, this proposal also recommits the party to an ‘all of the above’ energy stance, which was taken out of the platform after a lot of hard work in 2016.”
He and others plan to argue this new resolution at the DNC meeting later on in the month.
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