With help from Eric Wolff
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— A climate change-focused Democratic debate is gaining traction on the campaign trail and elsewhere in the party, with nearly two dozen Democratic lawmakers adding their support in interviews with POLITICO last week.
— EPA scientists expressed significant concerns with the agency’s decision to exempt areas of Wisconsin from smog limits, according to new emails reported by The New York Times.
— A federal judge partially blocked the president’s border wall plan in a lawsuit brought by the Sierra Club and the Southern Border Communities Coalition.
WELCOME TO TUESDAY! Hope everyone had a relaxing holiday break. I’m your host, Kelsey Tamborrino. Bracewell’s Frank Maisano knew that in 1868, Gen. John Logan, commander-in-chief of the Grand Army of the Republic, first designated May 30 as Memorial Day. For today: Which former House Budget chairman also served in a total of four Cabinet-level and White House positions? Send your tips, energy gossip and comments to ktamborrino@politico.com.
DEBATE TEAM: Support is growing for a presidential debate focused primarily on climate change as Democrats seek to differentiate themselves on an issue that is a top priority for the party’s voters. At least five presidential candidates have endorsed the idea first proposed by Gov. Jay Inslee, and nearly two dozen Democratic lawmakers endorsed the idea in interviews last week, Pro’s Anthony Adragna reports.
A climate-focused debate may force Democrats to confront disagreements over thorny issues like the role of natural gas and nuclear power in combating climate change, although some moderates say they are eager to see a wider discussion of the issue that has so far been dominated by the left.
“I actually think the politics has been pretty clouded of the Republicans portrayal of the Green New Deal as every Democrat’s solution,” said Rep. Scott Peters (D-Calif.), a member of the more centrist New Democrat Coalition who has not yet endorsed a presidential candidate. “I think the planet would be better served if we had an honest discussion about what Democrats are really talking about.”
The Democratic National Committee is non-committal on the idea. And some lawmakers told Anthony they’re concerned it would only reinforce internal Democratic divisions. “If you’re going to try to get everybody [united], you need to be talking about all the things that people care about,” said Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.). Read more.
By the way: The DNC and NBC News recently adopted a rule to evenly divide top-tier candidates across two nights in the first Democratic presidential primary debates in June. Democrats getting at least 2 percent support in the polling average will be randomly and evenly split between the two nights, which will each feature 10 candidates, POLITICO’s Zach Montellaro and Steven Shepard report.
OFF ROADING: The Interior Department said in a court filing Friday it will appeal a judge’s ruling that blocked the land swap that allowed the department to build an access road through the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska, Pro’s Alex Guillén reports. A judge previously ruled in March that Interior failed to explain why it had reversed course on the policy after the Obama administration rejected the road. Interior said Friday it will appeal that decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit.
EMAILS: STAFFERS OBJECTED TO EPA’S SMOG MOVE: New emails show EPA scientists raised objections to last year’s move by former Administrator Scott Pruitt to exempt most of southeastern Wisconsin from federal limits on smog, The New York Times reports. Pruitt’s decision in the spring of 2018 was a reversal from EPA’s own earlier recommendation, and came at the same time then-Republican Gov. Scott Walker was campaigning on promises to bring a planned $10 billion Foxconn factory to the area where pollution levels already exceeded federal limits.
Hundreds of emails and internal documents released Friday to the Sierra Club and Clean Wisconsin under the Freedom of Information Act show agency scientists complained “that conclusions in support of the decision, which could not be supported by data, were being demanded by top Trump administration officials,” the Times reports.
“I do not see a sound technical basis for the areas we are being directed to finalize in Wisconsin,” Jennifer Liljegren, an EPA physical scientist, wrote in an email dated April 11, 2018. “I will need the wordsmithing of the legal and policy experts if we are really going to do this — I am still in disbelief.”
— The Times also reported this weekend on the Trump administration’s efforts to undermine the science on which climate change policy rests across federal agencies. Most recently, the shift has been evident at the United States Geological Survey, where James Reilly has ordered scientific assessments use only computer-generated climate models that project the impact of climate change through 2040, instead of through the end of the century. Read more.
TO THE NORTH: Energy Undersecretary Mark Menezes and other senior Energy Department officials headed to Vancouver on Monday for the Clean Energy and Mission Innovation ministerials, bringing together energy ministers from more than 20 countries “to accelerate progress toward a clean energy future.”
U.S. officials will hold bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the event to discuss “advancement of clean energy through technology and innovation globally,” according to DOE. Side events today will focus on nuclear energy and energy storage, according to the agenda.
JUDGE HALTS BORDER WALL AFTER GREENS SUE: A federal judge partially blocked President Donald Trump’s plan to fund construction of a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border Friday, issuing a preliminary injunction in a lawsuit brought by the Sierra Club and the Southern Border Communities Coalition that immediately halts a $1 billion transfer of Pentagon counterdrug funding to cover expansions and enhancement of border barriers. But the order only limits construction in specific border areas in Texas and Arizona and does not prevent the administration from tapping other funding sources to advance those projects, POLITICO’s Josh Gerstein reports.
NEW REPORT EXAMINES 2050 PATHS: The Center for Climate and Energy Solutions will release today the results of a year-long effort with the RAND Corporation and the University of Maryland’s Joint Global Change Research Institute to look at the potential pathways for decarbonizing the U.S. economy by 2050.
The report outlines three different scenarios for reducing U.S. greenhouse gas emissions 80 percent by 2050 — one where there is “strong international pressure” in the form of carbon tariffs; another where U.S. states implement ambitious climate policies; and one where “increased urbanization, generational shifts, and technological breakthroughs lead to strong market demand for low-carbon consumption products and services.”
“The individual scenarios are interesting, but what’s most valuable are the insights you draw as you construct them and as you look across them,” said C2ES President Bob Perciasepe, a former EPA deputy administrator, in a statement. “One of my key takeaways is that companies understand the urgency and magnitude of this challenge and are committed to working with others to deliver durable solutions.” Read the report.
KLOBUCHAR PROMISES ‘OVERHAUL’ OF RFS WAIVERS: Sen. Amy Klobuchar, long a proponent of the Renewable Fuel Standard, promised over the weekend to make substantial changes in how the program issues exemptions to small refiners, calling EPA’s current program “misguided.” Klobuchar, who is making a swing through Iowa, also said she would seek a legislative change to allow year-round sale of 15 percent ethanol fuel, a move that failed to advance out of committee last Congress.
— “Democratic donnybrook could jeopardize must-win Senate seat,” POLITICO.
— “The Smithsonian’s renewed fossil hall sends a forceful message about climate change,” The Washington Post.
— “Placing power lines underground is an expensive way to reduce fire danger,” Los Angeles Times.
— “As North Dakota oil soars, so does waste of natural gas,” Associated Press.
— “Biden under pressure from environmentalists on climate plan,” The Hill.
— “Rick Perry’s greatest success in Trump’s Washington: invisibility,” CNN.
THAT’S ALL FOR ME!
