Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), a lead sponsor of the Green New Deal, on Tuesday critized the Democratic presidential debate moderators for not asking any climate crisis-related questions. (Photo: Senate Democrats/flickr/cc)
Feb 25, 2020
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez took issue with the moderators of Tuesday night's Democratic presidential debate, calling their failure to ask the candidates a single question about the climate crisis "horrifying."
\u201cNot a single climate change question. Horrifying.\u201d— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez) 1582687040
Tuesday's debate in Charleston, South Carolina was the 10th time Democratic hopefuls faced off. It was moderated by CBS's Gayle King, Margaret Brennan, Major Garrett, and Bill Whitaker, and could have been an opportunity for the seven candidates on stage--frontrunner Sen. Bernie Sanders, former Vice President Joe Biden, former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg, former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg, billionaire environmentalist Tom Steyer, and Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Elizabeth Warren--to address their plans for tackling the planetary emergency.
It wasn't.
Climate action advocates joined Ocasio-Cortez, a Sanders campaign surrogate, in criticizing the moderators' failure to ask about the crisis.
\u201cWe're used to waiting until the tail end of each debate to hear the moderators bring up the climate crisis.\n\nBut it's honestly shocking that @CBS, in the final #DemDebate before Supert Tuesday, didn\u2019t ask a single question about the defining issue of our lives.\u201d— Sunrise Movement \ud83c\udf05 (@Sunrise Movement \ud83c\udf05) 1582688412
\u201cCBS flunked this debate by skipping the climate crisis. Media, do better.\u201d— Jamal Raad\ud83c\udf32 (@Jamal Raad\ud83c\udf32) 1582685503
\u201c@grist @CBSNews Instead of sharing with voters how presidential candidates plan to take action on climate change, @CBSNews asked the candidates to name the \u201cbiggest misconception\u201d about them. @amyklobuchar said she really is fun. @JoeBiden apparently has more hair than he thinks he does. \n \n4/5\u201d— Nikhil Swaminathan (@Nikhil Swaminathan) 1582689321
In "more than two hours of debate--in a city that is already facing the consequences of the crisis--not a single question was asked on climate change. This is unacceptable," Sierra Club said Tuesday night. "The voters have demanded action, and the public deserves plans."
"We cannot afford four more years of Trump's deadly and dangerous inaction while communities like Charleston are experiencing what happens when the president ignores climate change," the environmental group continued. "Every Democratic debate must demand answers on how the candidates will address the climate crisis."
Join Us: News for people demanding a better world
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez took issue with the moderators of Tuesday night's Democratic presidential debate, calling their failure to ask the candidates a single question about the climate crisis "horrifying."
\u201cNot a single climate change question. Horrifying.\u201d— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez) 1582687040
Tuesday's debate in Charleston, South Carolina was the 10th time Democratic hopefuls faced off. It was moderated by CBS's Gayle King, Margaret Brennan, Major Garrett, and Bill Whitaker, and could have been an opportunity for the seven candidates on stage--frontrunner Sen. Bernie Sanders, former Vice President Joe Biden, former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg, former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg, billionaire environmentalist Tom Steyer, and Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Elizabeth Warren--to address their plans for tackling the planetary emergency.
It wasn't.
Climate action advocates joined Ocasio-Cortez, a Sanders campaign surrogate, in criticizing the moderators' failure to ask about the crisis.
\u201cWe're used to waiting until the tail end of each debate to hear the moderators bring up the climate crisis.\n\nBut it's honestly shocking that @CBS, in the final #DemDebate before Supert Tuesday, didn\u2019t ask a single question about the defining issue of our lives.\u201d— Sunrise Movement \ud83c\udf05 (@Sunrise Movement \ud83c\udf05) 1582688412
\u201cCBS flunked this debate by skipping the climate crisis. Media, do better.\u201d— Jamal Raad\ud83c\udf32 (@Jamal Raad\ud83c\udf32) 1582685503
\u201c@grist @CBSNews Instead of sharing with voters how presidential candidates plan to take action on climate change, @CBSNews asked the candidates to name the \u201cbiggest misconception\u201d about them. @amyklobuchar said she really is fun. @JoeBiden apparently has more hair than he thinks he does. \n \n4/5\u201d— Nikhil Swaminathan (@Nikhil Swaminathan) 1582689321
In "more than two hours of debate--in a city that is already facing the consequences of the crisis--not a single question was asked on climate change. This is unacceptable," Sierra Club said Tuesday night. "The voters have demanded action, and the public deserves plans."
"We cannot afford four more years of Trump's deadly and dangerous inaction while communities like Charleston are experiencing what happens when the president ignores climate change," the environmental group continued. "Every Democratic debate must demand answers on how the candidates will address the climate crisis."
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez took issue with the moderators of Tuesday night's Democratic presidential debate, calling their failure to ask the candidates a single question about the climate crisis "horrifying."
\u201cNot a single climate change question. Horrifying.\u201d— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez) 1582687040
Tuesday's debate in Charleston, South Carolina was the 10th time Democratic hopefuls faced off. It was moderated by CBS's Gayle King, Margaret Brennan, Major Garrett, and Bill Whitaker, and could have been an opportunity for the seven candidates on stage--frontrunner Sen. Bernie Sanders, former Vice President Joe Biden, former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg, former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg, billionaire environmentalist Tom Steyer, and Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Elizabeth Warren--to address their plans for tackling the planetary emergency.
It wasn't.
Climate action advocates joined Ocasio-Cortez, a Sanders campaign surrogate, in criticizing the moderators' failure to ask about the crisis.
\u201cWe're used to waiting until the tail end of each debate to hear the moderators bring up the climate crisis.\n\nBut it's honestly shocking that @CBS, in the final #DemDebate before Supert Tuesday, didn\u2019t ask a single question about the defining issue of our lives.\u201d— Sunrise Movement \ud83c\udf05 (@Sunrise Movement \ud83c\udf05) 1582688412
\u201cCBS flunked this debate by skipping the climate crisis. Media, do better.\u201d— Jamal Raad\ud83c\udf32 (@Jamal Raad\ud83c\udf32) 1582685503
\u201c@grist @CBSNews Instead of sharing with voters how presidential candidates plan to take action on climate change, @CBSNews asked the candidates to name the \u201cbiggest misconception\u201d about them. @amyklobuchar said she really is fun. @JoeBiden apparently has more hair than he thinks he does. \n \n4/5\u201d— Nikhil Swaminathan (@Nikhil Swaminathan) 1582689321
In "more than two hours of debate--in a city that is already facing the consequences of the crisis--not a single question was asked on climate change. This is unacceptable," Sierra Club said Tuesday night. "The voters have demanded action, and the public deserves plans."
"We cannot afford four more years of Trump's deadly and dangerous inaction while communities like Charleston are experiencing what happens when the president ignores climate change," the environmental group continued. "Every Democratic debate must demand answers on how the candidates will address the climate crisis."
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.