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For Immediate Release
May, 24 2010, 11:30am EDT
Contact:
Nick Berning, nberning@foe.org, 202-222-0748
Kelly Trout, ktrout@foe.org, 202-222-0722
Sen. Murkowski, Pawn of Special Interests, Poised to Bring Clean Air Act Rollback Measure to a Vote
Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) has indicated that she could bring
a measure to roll back the Clean Air Act to the Senate floor this week.
Sen. Murkowski's measure, called a "disapproval resolution," would
effectively destroy the Clean Air Act as a tool to reduce the
greenhouse gas emissions causing climate disruption.
Friends of the Earth's president, Erich Pica, had the following statement:
WASHINGTON
Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) has indicated that she could bring
a measure to roll back the Clean Air Act to the Senate floor this week.
Sen. Murkowski's measure, called a "disapproval resolution," would
effectively destroy the Clean Air Act as a tool to reduce the
greenhouse gas emissions causing climate disruption.
Friends of the Earth's president, Erich Pica, had the following statement:
"Sen. Murkowski's underhanded resolution is a dangerous measure
written for polluting corporations by their lobbyists. It would
eviscerate the most-effective existing tool at the federal level to cut
carbon emissions.
"A cardinal rule of solving problems is building on what works. The
Clean Air Act has a 40-year track record of saving lives and money. The
Obama administration has already finalized sensible Clean Air Act
standards that will start reducing climate-disrupting emissions from
our country's biggest industrial polluters next year. It would be
inexcusable to let greedy corporations veto this progress. But that's
exactly what Sen. Murkowski is trying to do.
"Last week's election results show that people from Pennsylvania to
Arkansas are sick of the corporate-run status quo in Washington.
Senators who endorse Sen. Murkowski's Dirty Air Act are throwing their
lot in with corporate polluters and selling out their constituents'
health."
Friends of the Earth fights for a more healthy and just world. Together we speak truth to power and expose those who endanger the health of people and the planet for corporate profit. We organize to build long-term political power and campaign to change the rules of our economic and political systems that create injustice and destroy nature.
(202) 783-7400LATEST NEWS
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"It is brutal imperialist aggression," said former Bolivian President Evo Morales.
Jan 03, 2026
The Trump administration's military assault on Venezuela and apparent capture of the country's president in the early hours of Saturday morning sparked immediate backlash from leaders in Latin America and across the globe, with lawmakers, activists, and experts accusing the US of launching yet another illegal war of aggression.
Latin American leaders portrayed the assault as a continuation of the long, bloody history of US intervention in the region, which has included vicious military coups and material support for genocidal right-wing forces.
"This is state terrorism against the brave Venezuelan people and against Our America," Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel wrote in a social media post, demanding urgent action from the international community in response to the "criminal attack."
Evo Morales, the leftist former president of Bolivia, said that "we strongly and unequivocally repudiate" the US attack on Venezuela.
"It is brutal imperialist aggression that violates its sovereignty," Morales added. "All our solidarity with the Venezuelan people in resistance."
Colombian President Gustavo Petro, one of the first world leaders to respond to Saturday's developments, decried US "aggression against the sovereignty of Venezuela and of Latin America." Petro said Colombian forces "are being deployed" to the nation's border with Venezuela and that "all available support forces will be deployed in the event of a massive influx of refugees."
"Without sovereignty, there is no nation," said Petro. "Peace is the way, and dialogue between peoples is fundamental for national unity. Dialogue and more dialogue is our proposal."
One Latin American leader, far-right Argentine president and Trump ally Javier Milei, openly celebrated the alleged US capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, declaring on social media, "FREEDOM ADVANCES."
Leaders and lawmakers in Europe also reacted to the US bombings. Pedro Sánchez, the prime minister of Spain, issued a cautious statement calling for "deescalation and responsibility."
British MP Zarah Sultana was far more forceful, writing on social media that "Venezuela has the world’s largest oil reserves—and that’s no coincidence."
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US President Donald Trump claimed early Saturday that Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro was "captured and flown out of the country" after American forces bombed Venezuela's capital.
Maduro's alleged capture came after multiple explosions and sounds of aircraft were reported in Caracas, including at a military base at the center of the capital. Following the explosions, Maduro declared a state of emergency and accused the US of "military aggression." The Trump administration has accused Maduro, without evidence, of heading a drug cartel.
Vladimir Padrino, Venezuela's defense minister, said the US attacked both civilian and military sites, and that authorities are gathering information on casualties. Padrino said Venezuela would resist the presence of foreign troops and denounced US "imperialism" and "greed for our natural resources."
Venezuela’s attorney general, Tarek William Saab, said in televised remarks that "innocent victims have been mortally wounded and others killed by this criminal terrorist attack," and demanded proof that Maduro and his wife, who was also reportedly captured by the US, are alive.
Trump—who in recent months has repeatedly threatened to attack Venezuela, oust its president, and seize the nation's vast oil reserves—provided few details about the military assault, which followed a monthslong boat-bombing spree in international waters.
The US president did not receive congressional authorization for any of the strikes, and he said Saturday's operation was carried out in collaboration with American law enforcement. In 2020, during Trump's first White House term, Maduro was indicted on narcoterrorism charges by the US Justice Department, which at the time offered rewards up to $15 million for information leading to his arrest.
Trump said a press conference would be held at his Mar-a-Lago resort at 11 am ET on Saturday.
News of the US attack on Venezuela was met with immediate outrage.
"This goes beyond broken promises of peacemaking," said Nancy Okail, president and CEO of the Center for International Policy. "Trump is launching an illegal assault on Venezuela, pulling the US into another military adventure without authorization or a credible national security threat. Congress must act now to halt further military escalations."
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Jan 02, 2026
Developers behind two of the five offshore wind projects recently targeted by the Trump administration took action in federal court this week, seeking preliminary injunctions that would enable construction to continue while the legal battles play out.
Empire Offshore Wind LLC filed a civil lawsuit in the US District Court for the District of Columbia on Friday, challenging the Department of the Interior's (DOI) December 22 stop-work order, which the company argued is "unlawful and threatens the progress of ongoing work with significant implications for the project" off the coast of New York.
"Empire Wind is more than 60% complete and represents a significant investment in U.S. energy infrastructure, jobs, and supply chains," the company highlighted. "The project's construction phase alone has put nearly 4,000 people to work, both within the lease area and through the revitalization of the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal."
The filing came just a day after a similar one in the same court on Thursday from the joint venture between Skyborn Renewables and the Danish company Ørsted, which is developing Revolution Wind off Rhode Island and Connecticut. That project is approximately 87% complete and was expected to begin generating power as soon as this month.
"Sunrise Wind LLC, a separate project and wholly owned subsidiary of Ørsted that also received a lease suspension order on December 22, continues to evaluate all options to resolve the matter, including engagement with relevant agencies and stakeholders and considering legal proceedings," the Danish firm said. That project is also off New York.
As the New York Times noted Friday: "At stake overall is about $25 billion of investment in the five wind farms. The projects were expected to create 10,000 jobs and to power more than 2.5 million homes and businesses."
Trump’s attack on offshore wind is really an attack on our economy. He’s jacking up energy bills, firing thousands of union workers, & leaving our nation behind. We need more energy in order to bring down costs. Trump is leading us in the wrong direction.
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— U.S. Senator Jack Reed (@reed.senate.gov) January 2, 2026 at 4:37 PM
The other two projects targeted by the Trump administration over alleged national security concerns are Vineyard Wind 1 off Massachusetts and Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind. The developer of the latter, Dominion Energy, launched a legal challenge in federal court in Virginia the day after the DOI's lease suspension order, and a hearing is scheduled for this month.
"Delaying the project will lead to increased costs for customers and threaten long-term grid reliability," Dominion spokesperson Jeremy Slayton told NC Newsline on Tuesday. "Given the project's critical importance, we have a responsibility to pursue every available avenue to deliver the project as quickly and at the lowest cost possible on behalf of our customers and the stability of the overall grid."
President Donald Trump's public opposition to offshore wind energy dates back to before his first term as president, when he unsuccessfully fought against the Aberdeen Bay Wind Farm near his golf course in Scotland. Since entering US politics, the Republican has taken money from and served the interests of fossil fuel giants while waging war on renewable power projects and lying about the climate emergency.
As the Times detailed:
Mr. Trump has falsely claimed that wind farms kill whales (scientists have said there is no evidence to support that) and that turbines "litter" the country and are like "garbage in a field"...
This week President Trump posted on social media a photo of a bird beneath a windmill and suggested it was a bald eagle killed in the United States by a wind turbine. "Windmills are killing all of our beautiful Bald Eagles," the president wrote. It was also posted by the White House and the Department of Energy.
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While the DOI did not respond to the newspaper's request for comment, and the department referred the Hill to its December statement citing radar interference concerns, White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers told NC Newsline earlier this week that Trump has made clear that he believes wind energy is "the scam of the century."
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Meanwhile, climate campaigners and elected Democrats have blasted the Trump administration's attacks on the five offshore projects, warning of the economic and planetary consequences. Democratic senators have also halted permitting reform talks over the president's "reckless and vindictive assault" on wind power.
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