Feb 8, 2019

The Green New Deal is getting a boost from 2020 hopefuls

Ben Geman

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images

Until yesterday, Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) hadn't made climate change central to their political careers.

But now they comprise roughly half of the initial Senate cosponsors of what's by far the most sweeping and aggressive global warming template ever proposed on Capitol Hill.

Why it matters: It's a testament to the meteoric rise of the Green New Deal concept. But there's also raw and delicate politics at play — Rep. Alexandrio Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and her allies are a force in Democratic politics and they're already affecting the 2020 race.

The bottom line: Any hesitation these 2020 candidates might have about embracing the proposal are simply overwhelmed by the nearer-term political backlash of getting on the wrong side of the progressive orbit ahead of the primaries.

Go deeper: The Green New Deal resolution is here

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