American Withdrawal From Paris Agreement Is A Step Backwards

Liam Carmichael, PHS Paperclip Writer

On June 1st, Donald Trump announced in the White House Rose Garden that the United States would be withdrawing from the Paris Climate Agreement. This was devastating to the majority.

This is just the latest example of seemingly ill-informed decisions on behalf of the Trump Administration. During a press conference, the President cited economic restriction on American industry as the primary motivation behind withdrawing from the agreement. What the President does not apparently understand is that the standards set by the agreement are only suggestions and no punishment is incurred on nations that fail to meet the standards. What that does is totally alleviate the economic burden on American industry.

This isn’t a legally binding contract to reduce carbon emissions, but rather an international agreement to address the climate issue as a united front. North Korea signed this. Yes, the country trying to blow up the planet wants to save it. T

he only countries that did not agree to it were Nicaragua due to their feeling that the agreement did too little and wasn’t worth their time, and Syria, a country that has much more important things to worry about. And so, the first time that nearly the entire world comes together to fight global warming, Donald Trump wants to “renegotiate” because he thinks he’s being treated unfairly. It is absurd, ridiculous, and the perpetuation of the narcissistic outlook that he runs the country and the free world with.

“The Trump Administration’s stance on climate issues is awful and humiliating,” Said Portsmouth High School Ecology teacher Diedre Barrett. “Even the Obama Administration didn’t do enough but they were infinitely better.” That type of disappointment with the withdrawal from the agreement isn’t strictly partisan; voters and politicians on both sides of the aisle are upset over the administration’s move. No one knows what the future of this presidency will look like, but if the Paris Agreement is any type of forecast, then we are in for an incredibly difficulty next three years.