Former President Donald Trump’s selection of Ohio Senator JD Vance as his running mate for the 2024 election has ignited a firestorm among climate campaigners and labor unions. Vance, who once expressed concerns about climate change, is now a staunch climate denier and a strong supporter of the fossil fuel industry. His ties to corporate interests and his anti-worker legislative record have also drawn sharp criticism from labor leaders.
JD Vance’s public and private statements from 2016 and 2017 show a politician who was once concerned about climate change. Before running for the Senate, Vance acknowledged the reality of climate issues. However, his stance shifted dramatically once he entered the political arena. Vance’s record now shows a consistent pattern of voting to dismantle Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) protections and denying the existence of a climate crisis.
“Like Donald Trump, JD Vance has proven that he will make it a top priority to roll back climate protections while answering to the demands of oil and gas CEOs,” said Stevie O’Hanlon, communications director of the Sunrise Movement. “Vance is one of Congress’ biggest recipients of donations from oil companies.”
Vance’s campaign has received substantial contributions from the fossil fuel industry. His top donors include several major oil companies, reflecting his strong support for the industry. This financial backing aligns with his legislative actions, which have consistently favored fossil fuel interests over environmental protections.
Climate campaigners are particularly alarmed by Vance’s endorsement of the Project 2025 plan. JL Andrepont of 350 Action noted, “We are facing a dire need to ward off further climate catastrophe and injustice. JD Vance is another climate-denying authoritarian who poses massive danger to this country. He has praised the horrific Project 2025 plan and said there are ‘good ideas in there.’”
During Trump’s first term, his administration aggressively rolled back climate and environmental regulations. Key appointees like Rex Tillerson, former secretary of state, and Ryan Zinke, former interior secretary, were former fossil fuel executives. Trump’s presidency was marked by an unprecedented dismantling of climate protections, and climate campaigners fear a second Trump administration with Vance as vice president could lead to even more severe consequences.
Mitch Jones, deputy director of Food & Water Watch Action, emphasized the threat posed by a Trump-Vance ticket: “Just like Trump himself, JD Vance is a fossil fuel backer and climate change denier that poses a serious risk to public health and our environment. The duo represents an existential threat to a livable climate future for all Americans and people around the globe.”
Vance’s record on labor rights has also come under intense scrutiny. Despite portraying himself as a supporter of the working class, Vance’s actions in the Senate tell a different story. He has opposed congressional efforts to strengthen organizing rights, allowed corporate lobbyists to influence his legislation, and received significant donations from corporate elites.
Liz Shuler, president of the AFL-CIO, the nation’s largest federation of unions, warned voters about the pro-worker facade constructed by the Trump-Vance ticket. “Donald Trump has a miserable record of breaking every promise he’s made to working people—from failing to pay his workers and crossing a picket line to his disastrous four years in the White House,” Shuler said. “That betrayal would continue if he is reelected—so it’s no surprise Trump chose a vice president who will be nothing more than a rubber stamp for that anti-worker vision.”
Shuler pointed out Vance’s anti-union actions: “Sen. JD Vance likes to play union supporter on the picket line, but his record proves that to be a sham. He has introduced legislation to allow bosses to bypass their workers’ unions with phony corporate-run unions, disparaged striking UAW members while collecting hefty donations from one of the major auto companies, and opposed the landmark Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, which would end union-busting ‘right to work’ laws and make it easier for workers to form unions and win strong contracts.”
Service Employees International Union president April Verrett echoed these concerns, stating, “While Vance may portray himself as a working-class hero, his record tells another story. The truth is that Senator Vance’s loyalties lie with the Wall Street bankers and Silicon Valley billionaires who have bankrolled his political career. Together, Donald Trump and JD Vance will seek to protect the wealthy and corporations while enacting their insidious Project 2025 agenda.”
The GOP’s platform at their convention in Wisconsin included a vague promise to put “American workers first” but made no mention of unions. The nation’s union membership rate fell to an all-time low last year, a trend labor leaders attribute to the GOP’s long-running war on labor rights.
Sara Nelson, president of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, urged workers to see through the rhetoric of the Trump-Vance ticket. “This ticket isn’t pro-worker or pro-union. It’s the billionaire ticket through and through,” Nelson said.
As climate activists and labor unions sound the alarm, the potential consequences of a Trump-Vance administration become increasingly clear. Vance’s alignment with fossil fuel interests and anti-union policies underscores the urgency of the opposition from climate and labor advocates. Stevie O’Hanlon of the Sunrise Movement summed up the stakes: “JD Vance will sell out to the highest bidder, whether that’s Trump or the fossil fuel industry. That makes him dangerous. We must reject him and all climate deniers at the polls.”
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