上周，当被问及正在进行的党派预算和解法案谈判中最大的症结是什么时，进步核心小组成员、加州众议员罗康娜给美国广播公司新闻发了一条短信:“气候。”
此后，在电视采访中，其他几位进步领导人也迅速强调了他们对全面预算方案中与气候相关条款的承诺，暗示随着与关键抵制者乔·曼钦(Joe Manchin)和克里斯汀·西内马(Kyrsten Sinema)的辩论继续进行，这些问题是首要问题。如果没有共和党对预算提案的支持，民主党将无法失去这两票。
尽管白宫急于就预算法案达成协议，但即将于本月底在苏格兰格拉斯格洛举行的美国国家气候变化会议，正在给总统施加压力，要求他在气候变化问题上有所作为。
在最近对国内外观众发表的公开讲话中，乔·拜登总统不仅概述了在未来10年大幅减少美国温室气体排放总量和对化石燃料依赖的大胆基准，而且他还依赖其他国家兑现承诺。
气候变化倡导组织常青行动的联合创始人兼执行董事贾马尔·拉德告诉美国广播公司新闻，“总统不能空手而归”。“目前的预算和解方案包括几项主要立法，这些立法将降低排放，让我们在全球舞台上受到重视。”
但曼钦对一些能源提议表示怀疑，包括对可再生能源生产的新税收激励措施，以及对不加速向清洁能源过渡的公用事业公司的抑制措施。作为一个深深扎根于煤炭的州，曼钦一再表示，他不愿意支持被视为惩罚化石燃料的措施。
在美国有线电视新闻网的“国情咨文”上个月，曼钦表示支持当前预算提案中概述的许多(如果不是全部的话)社会项目，但当被问及气候和碳排放提案时，他说:“(能源)转型正在发生。现在他们想付钱给公司去做他们已经在做的事情。对我来说，我们拿走数十亿美元，并为他们在市场转型时将要做的事情支付水电费，这毫无意义。”
在美国广播公司新闻获得的一份文件中，显示了整个夏天的预算谈判，曼钦还列出，如果能源公司将获得可再生能源生产的税收抵免，他不赞成削减化石燃料补贴。
拜登继续竞选消除对化石燃料公司的税收补贴，当美国广播公司新闻频道(ABC News)周五询问此事时，白宫新闻秘书珍·普萨基(Jen Psaki)表示，终止这些补贴仍是白宫的目标。
总统最初提出的大规模政府支出以促进可再生能源生产的提议被取消，并被缩减，以在8月初在参议院通过两党基础设施协议。进步人士当时被告知，许多想法将被挽救，并纳入党派预算和解方案。
目前，该预算包括超过3000亿美元的拟议清洁能源税收抵免，旨在支持能源公司努力增加可再生能源、清洁汽车和绿色建筑的生产;激励消费者购买电动汽车;围绕甲烷泄漏的收费和更严格的规定;以及1500亿美元用于清洁电力绩效计划，旨在激励公用事业公司每年提供至少4%以上的清洁能源，目标是到2030年在全国范围内实现80%的零排放电力。
与玛格丽特·布伦南交谈在哥伦比亚广播公司的“面对国家”节目中纽约民主党进步众议员亚历山大·奥卡西奥-科尔特斯周日表示，预算方案中的气候条款对她来说是不可谈判的。她描述了一份来自政府间气候变化专门委员会作为“人类红色代码”
“我认为，根据我们现有的一些气候规定，我们目前无法承受碳排放或化石燃料排放的增加。这就是科学。这不是我们可以拒绝的，”奥卡西奥-科尔特斯告诉布伦南。
“尽管你知道，在这些问题上，你会遇到参议员乔·曼钦，”布伦南回答奥卡西奥-科尔特斯，这位国会女议员并不反对。
“是的，我认为曼钦参议员将走向科学，”奥卡西奥-科尔特斯回应道。
在美国广播公司周日的“本周”节目中，佛蒙特州参议院预算主席伯尼·桑德斯认为应对气候变化的问题，整个预算方案的最高支出总额可能太小。
桑德斯对美国广播公司(ABC)的乔纳森·卡尔(Jonathan Karl)表示:“当我们特别谈论气候变化的危机，以及将我们的能源系统从化石燃料转型的必要性时，我最初提出的6万亿美元可能太少了，3.5万亿美元应该是最低的。
除了气候条款，预算还包括资助新的社会项目，如全民学前教育、带薪病假和免费社区大学。
Climate change provisions remain crucial piece of reconciliation debate
Asked last week what the biggest sticking points were in the ongoing negotiations over the partisan budget reconciliation bill, California Rep. Ro Khanna, a member of the progressive caucus, texted ABC News one word: "climate."
In television interviews since, several other progressive leaders have also been quick to underscore their commitment to the climate-related provisions in the sweeping budget package, suggesting the issues are top of mind as debate continues with key holdouts Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz. Without Republican support around the budget proposals, Democrats cannot afford to lose either vote.
Although the White House is eager to strike a deal on the budget bill, the upcoming United National Climate Change Conference in Glasglow, Scotland, at the end of the month is adding pressure for the president to deliver on climate change.
In his recent public remarks to both domestic and foreign audiences, President Joe Biden has not only outlined bold benchmarks for dramatically reducing the United States’ total greenhouse gas emissions and dependency on fossil fuels over the next 10 years, but he has also leaned on other nations to up their commitments, too.
"The president cannot show up in Glasgow empty-handed," Jamal Raad, co-founder and executive director of climate change advocacy group Evergreen Action, told ABC News. "The current budget reconciliation package includes major pieces of legislation that will drive down emissions and let us be taken seriously on the global stage."
But Manchin has expressed skepticism around some of the energy proposals, including new tax incentives for renewable energy production and disincentives for utility companies that do not accelerate a transition to cleaner energy sources. From a state with deep roots in coal, Manchin has repeatedly indicated he is reluctant to support measures viewed as punishing fossil fuels.
OnCNN’s "State of the Union"last month, Manchin expressed his support for many, if not all, of the social programs outlined in the current budget proposal, but when pressed on the climate and carbon emissions proposal he said, "The [energy] transition is happening. Now they're wanting to pay companies to do what they're already doing. Makes no sense to me at all for us to take billions of dollars and pay utilities for what they're going to do as the market transitions."
In a document obtained by ABC News showing negotiations on the budget from over the summer, Manchin also listed that he was not in favor of cutting subsidies for fossil fuels if energy companies were going to be given tax credits for the production of renewable energies.
Biden campaigned oneliminatingtax subsidies for fossil fuel companies, and when asked about it by ABC News on Friday, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said ending them was still the White House’s goal.
The president’s initial proposals for large-scale government spending to foster renewable energy production were scrapped and scaled back to pass the bipartisan infrastructure deal in the Senate in early August. Progressives were told at the time that many of the ideas would be salvaged and included in the partisan budget reconciliation package.
Currently, the budget includes over $300 billion in proposed clean energy tax credits intended to support energy companies’ work to ramp up the production of renewables, cleaner cars and greener buildings; incentives for consumers to buy electric vehicles; fees and stricter rules around methane leaks; and $150 billion for a Clean Electricity Performance Program designed to incentivize utility companies to supply at least 4% more clean energy year over year with the target of reaching 80% zero-emission electricity nationwide by 2030.
Speaking to Margaret Brennanon CBS’s "Face the Nation,"progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., said Sunday the climate provisions in the budget package were non-negotiable to her. She described a recent report from theIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Changeas a "code red for humanity."
“I think some of the climate provisions that we have, we cannot afford to increase carbon or just fossil fuel emissions at this time. That is simply the science. That is not something we can kick down the line,” Ocasio-Cortez told Brennan.
“You're going to run right into Sen. Joe Manchin on those issues though, you know that,” Brennan replied to Ocasio-Cortez, and the congresswoman did not disagree.
“Yes, and I think Sen. Manchin is going to run to the science,” Ocasio-Cortez responded.
On ABC's "This Week" on Sunday, Senate Budget Chair Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, argued that on theissue of fighting climate change, the top-line spending totals for the entire budget package were probably too small.
"When we especially talk about the crisis of climate change, and the need to transform our energy system away from fossil fuel, the $6 trillion that I had originally proposed was probably too little, $3.5 trillion should be a minimum," Sanders told ABC’s Jonathan Karl.
Beyond climate provisions, the budget also includes funding for new social programs like universal pre-K, paid medical leave and free community college.
