Harris campaign goes drilling

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Jul 30, 2024 View in browser   By Jordan Wolman THE BIG IDEA Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro could be just what Vice President Kamala Harris needs in the Keystone State. | Matt Rourke/AP Photo FRACKING AROUND — As Vice President Kamala Harris prepares to accept the Democratic nomination for president and flesh out a policy agenda of her own, she’s already confronting political hot potatoes that could undermine her efforts to woo moderate voters. Her campaign’s weekend statement aimed at clarifying her views on fracking, a type of oil and gas drilling that’s brought a boom to battleground states like Pennsylvania, has done little so far to assuage broader concerns about her relationships with blue-collar industrial workers, even though she’d dropped her opposition to a fracking ban to align with President Joe Biden after becoming his running mate. Former President Donald Trump had pounced on Harris’ past fracking stance — she sued the Obama administration to block plans to drill off the California coast — and her broader climate agenda, casting her as “ultra liberal” at a recent rally. Down-ballot Republicans are also looking to exploit her energy record, as shown in a new ad from Dave McCormick, the GOP nominee for Senate in Pennsylvania. But even with fracking seemingly addressed, blue-collar workers in Pennsylvania’s industrial base still aren’t sold — and want to hear before giving Harris a shot at cobbling together the sort of coalition that helped Biden carry the nation’s No. 2 gas producing state after Trump’s 2016 victory there, Josh Siegel and your host report. “She really needs to have face-to-face conversations with union leaders in the areas most affected by this and go on the record of being a supporter and proponent of natural gas — not just someone who won’t ban fracking,” said Jeff Nobers, executive director of the Builders Guild of Western Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania’s popular Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro, rumored to be in the race to become Harris’ running mate, might be able to help shore up Keystone State support for the vice president among moderate voters as she eases away from the view of her as one of the most progressive members of the U.S. Senate when she served there. Shapiro, who won the 2022 governor’s race by 15 points and boasts a 64 percent approval rating, has crafted an energy strategy that seeks to appeal to fossil fuel interests, organized labor and environmentalists. Many Pennsylvania Democrats are pitching him to be on the ticket with Harris, viewing him as the best answer to her potential political vulnerabilities. State Rep. Mike Schlossberg, a Democrat from the eastern part of the state who serves as majority caucus chair, said he “one thousand percent” wants Shapiro to be chosen as the vice presidential nominee. And he said “energy policy is one reason why” Shapiro, who has steered clear of supporting any sort of fracking ban and criticized Biden’s pause on exports from new liquefied natural gas projects, could boost Harris. “I just don’t see it sticking,” Schlossberg said of the Republicans’ fracking attacks. AROUND THE NATION NOT PILING ON — Harris is racking up endorsements and building out her coalition as she charges toward formally receiving the Democratic Party’s nomination to take on Trump, but some green groups from her home turf aren’t yet sold. The loud silence from California environmental justice groups is only growing, even as the vice president leaned into her work protecting overburdened communities from pollution while serving as the state’s attorney general, Blanca Begert reports. It might have nothing to do with Harris’ environmental record, which is fairly robust and aligned with national groups’ priorities. The resistance may be more tied to her criminal justice record as AG. “Police brutality aligns with environmental justice issues, because it’s mostly our communities of color and the folks that are facing poverty that are more targeted,” said Ana Gonzalez, executive director of the Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice, a Southern California-based nonprofit. “And so we didn’t see her as a champion to that end.” CARBON MARKETS DUNKING ON OFFSETS — Slamming carbon offsets is in vogue right now, and the fact that the world’s largest verifier of corporate climate targets has joined the chorus can only give the criticisms a little extra weight. A new paper from the Science-Based Targets initiative — which has validated targets for more than 4,000 companies, including giants like Amazon and Cigna — argues that letting companies buy carbon credits to offset their pollution presents “clear risks,” Federica Di Sario and your host report. Companies, trade groups and environmental NGOs that offered comments for SBTi’s report overwhelmingly agreed that “treating carbon credits as fungible with other sources, sinks, or reductions of emissions is inadvisable, illogical, or damaging to global mitigation goals.” The paper, which examined the role of carbon credits in mitigating greenhouse gas emissions, is one step on SBTi’s journey to revamping its corporate target-setting rules. But it was a closely-watched step after the body became embroiled in controversy earlier this year when its board endorsed a policy change allowing for companies to use carbon credits to offset Scope 3 emissions, those generated by companies’ value chain and often accounting for the vast majority of their pollution. An internal backlash ensued, with more than four dozen advisers urging the board to retract the statement and at least one resigning in the wake of the dispute. A separate technical paper published Tuesday leaves open the possibility for carbon credits to be used within the value chain to substantiate Scope 3 emission reduction claims.   Live briefings, policy trackers, and procedural, industry, and people intelligence from POLITICO Pro Analysis gives you the insights you need to focus your policy strategy this election cycle. Secure your seat.      YOU TELL US GAME ON — Welcome to the Long Game, where we tell you about the latest on efforts to shape our future. Join us every Tuesday as we keep you in the loop on the world of sustainability. Team Sustainability is editor Greg Mott and reporters Jordan Wolman and Allison Prang. Reach us all at gmott@politico.com, jwolman@politico.com and aprang@politico.com. Sign up for the Long Game. It's free!   SUBSCRIBE TO GLOBAL PLAYBOOK: Don’t miss out on POLITICO’s Global Playbook, our newsletter taking you inside pivotal discussions at the most influential gatherings in the world. Suzanne Lynch delivers the world's elite and influential moments directly to you. Stay in the global loop. SUBSCRIBE NOW.     WHAT WE'RE CLICKING — A group of prominent climate leaders is endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris and saying she could energize young voters, according to the Washington Post. — Environmental activist Erin Brockovich argues in a New York Times opinion piece that the next U.S. president must act to deal with “forever chemicals.” — A Silicon Valley startup is aiming to modernize the mining industry by using artificial intelligence to hunt for copper and lithium, the Wall Street Journal reports.   Follow us on Twitter Debra Kahn @debra_kahn Greg Mott @gwmott Jordan Wolman @jordanwolman Allison Prang @AllisonPrang   Follow us

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