Thursday, June 9, 2016
Jonathon Berman                             

Sierra Club Endorses Hillary Clinton for President

San Francisco, CA -- Today, the Sierra Club endorsed Secretary Hillary Clinton for President.

In response, Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune released the following statement:

“We firmly believe Secretary Clinton will be the strong environmental champion that we need to lead our country, which is why the Sierra Club is proud to endorse her and her vision for America.

“Over the last eight years, our country has made enormous advancements in cutting carbon pollution, transitioning away from dirty fuels, and increasing clean energy deployment. Secretary Clinton has a long record on the environment and is the leader we need to build on this progress made by President Obama and the climate movement. She has listened to the grassroots and crafted detailed plans to safeguard our climate, air, water, and public lands, to protect the most vulnerable from environmental injustice, and to continue the rapid expansion of our clean energy economy.

“Senator Bernie Sanders and his millions of supporters ran a hard-fought campaign and helped elevate climate change and protecting our environment while reducing inequality as key issues in the Democratic Primary. Senator Sanders and his supporters brought the passionate, principled advocacy that we need, and we are eager to work together to raise these issues in every campaign--not just the presidential race. 

“Together, Senator Sanders and Secretary Clinton made this an election about the issues and finding real solutions. Solutions like protecting our oceans and public lands from fossil fuel development; rejecting dangerous trade deals such as the Trans Pacific Partnership; and transitioning onto 100% clean, renewable energy.

“Contrasted with that, we have a reckless and misinformed candidate in Donald Trump, who has called climate change a “hoax,” a “con job,” and a “concept created by the Chinese.” Trump’s record setting contradictory statements includes his “energy plan.” Trump claims he’ll protect clean air and water but has pledged to dismantle the EPA. He offers vague promises to create jobs but would stifle growth in wind and solar, which are among the fastest growing sectors of the U.S. economy. And when he gets to specifics, Trump makes rash promises, like ripping up the Paris Climate Agreement, a landmark agreement that brought 196 countries together for the first time in history. The gap on environmental and climate issues between Secretary Clinton and Donald Trump is the largest in U.S. political history.

“The Sierra Club, like so many Americans, not only wants to protect President Obama’s legacy--we want to expand it. That is something we can accomplish with a Clinton White House, and it’s why the Sierra Club’s members and supporters will work tirelessly to make sure she’s elected this November. We have an historic opportunity to build a clean energy economy that puts millions of people to work, and there’s no turning back.”

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June 9, 2016

Today, following the endorsement of the Sierra Club, the environmental organization founded more than 100 years ago by pioneering conservationist John Muir, Hillary Clinton issued the following statement. Clinton previously earned the endorsement of the League of Conservation Voters and of the NRDC Action Fund:

“I am honored to have earned the endorsement of the Sierra Club, an organization that has fought to protect our environment, our natural wonders, and the health of our children for more than a century.

“Climate change is real and we can see its impacts in our communities right now. We need to take immediate action to make America the clean energy superpower of the 21st century, create good-paying jobs, and make sure no one is left out or left behind, from communities struggling with the legacy of environmental racism to the coalfield communities that kept America’s lights on for generations.

“The stakes for our children’s health and the future of our planet have never been higher. Donald Trump has called climate change a Chinese hoax and said he will scrap the landmark Paris climate agreement.  He has pledged to open up millions of acres of pristine public lands and waters to fossil fuel production at a time when America’s public lands are under unprecedented pressures.  We need to be accelerating the transition to a clean energy future and creating thousands of good-paying, high-quality jobs, not letting a climate denier anywhere near the White House.

“The challenges facing our environment have changed since John Muir's day, but one thing remains the same--there is no Planet B.”