WEBVTT - Trump Ally Barrack Charged With Illegal Lobbying

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<v Speaker 1>This is Bloomberg Law with June Brussel from Bloomberg Radio.

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<v Speaker 1>Tom Barrett, the founder of investment firm Colony Capital, was

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<v Speaker 1>a friend and confidante of former President Trump, advising him

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<v Speaker 1>on everything from cabinet appointments to foreign policy, something he

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<v Speaker 1>discussed in an exclusive interview with Bloomberg a little over

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<v Speaker 1>a week ago. From my simple beginnings of where I

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<v Speaker 1>came to have the gift and the opportunity to be

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<v Speaker 1>next to a president of the United States, to have

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<v Speaker 1>the honor of running an inauguration, to be up close

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<v Speaker 1>and personal on some issues that affect world order. Now,

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<v Speaker 1>federal prosecutors alleged that Barrack was too up close and

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<v Speaker 1>personal on issues affecting world order, specifically affecting the United

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<v Speaker 1>Arab Emirates. Barrick was arrested this week on charges of

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<v Speaker 1>illegal lobbying for a foreign government, and allegation prosecutors have

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<v Speaker 1>successfully brought against several other Trump associates, in addition to

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<v Speaker 1>charges of obstruction of justice and lying to the FBI.

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<v Speaker 1>Joining me as former federal prosecutor. Jimmy Grula a professor

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<v Speaker 1>at Notre Dame Law School. So, Jimmy, are these charges serious.

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<v Speaker 1>They are serious charges. I mean Tom Barrick is charged

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<v Speaker 1>with seven counts including failing to file as a foreign agent,

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<v Speaker 1>conspiracy to act as an unregistered agent, obstruction of justice

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<v Speaker 1>specifically involving obstructing a federal grand jury investigation, and then

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<v Speaker 1>four counts of making material false statements to a federal agent,

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<v Speaker 1>specifically FBI agents. They are serious charge. I mean the

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<v Speaker 1>obstruction of justice charge alone carries some maximum twenty year

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<v Speaker 1>sentence of imprisonment. This is what's called a speaking indictment

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<v Speaker 1>because it provides so much detail. Did some of the

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<v Speaker 1>incidents charge stand out to you as particularly egregious, Well,

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<v Speaker 1>the ones I think that the most troublesome is where

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<v Speaker 1>Barrick is actually attempting to influence presidential appointments. You know,

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<v Speaker 1>for example, the U S Ambassador to the U A

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<v Speaker 1>and where he's been asked by members of the U

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<v Speaker 1>A government to get information inside information on who the

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<v Speaker 1>Trump administration is considering for key high level government posts

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<v Speaker 1>such as the Secretary of State, the director of the CIA,

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<v Speaker 1>and some other high level officials. And so what that

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<v Speaker 1>demonstrates is that Barrick is actually acting again on behalf

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<v Speaker 1>of the foreign government. But is not being transparent. And

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<v Speaker 1>so he has this very close relationship with former President Trump,

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<v Speaker 1>a relationship that he's maintained over I think approximately thirty years.

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<v Speaker 1>He served as an informal advisor to then presidential candidate Trump,

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<v Speaker 1>president elect Trump, and then even as president. And so

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<v Speaker 1>the conflict here is is he giving the former president

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<v Speaker 1>advice that's in the best interests of the US government,

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<v Speaker 1>or again, is he giving advice for the benefit of

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<v Speaker 1>the U A. Barrack isn't the first of Trump's allies

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<v Speaker 1>to be charged with violations of the Foreign Agents Registration

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<v Speaker 1>Act or FARAH, But I don't remember many high profile

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<v Speaker 1>indictments under FARAH before this was this not enforced much? Well,

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<v Speaker 1>it's infrequently used, I mean, so it's not the federal

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<v Speaker 1>charge that we see brought on a regular basis. I mean,

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<v Speaker 1>it carries a five year sentence of incarceration. So it

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<v Speaker 1>is a felony, there's no question about it. But often

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<v Speaker 1>this type of matter might be handled behind the scenes.

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<v Speaker 1>There might be efforts made. You know there's a problem here,

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<v Speaker 1>Oh you know I'm being investigated, Ye, let me go register.

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<v Speaker 1>But here what ends up happening is not only does

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<v Speaker 1>Barrick not register as a foreign agent even though he's

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<v Speaker 1>acting on behalf of the UAE. But then he lies,

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<v Speaker 1>at least the indictment alleges that he lies to the

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<v Speaker 1>FBI about the relationship that he has with the UAE,

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<v Speaker 1>and the effort says he's undertaken on behalf of the UAE,

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<v Speaker 1>and he does so as a legend the dagon multiple times.

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<v Speaker 1>And being a former federal prosecutor, you know that when

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<v Speaker 1>the FBI is asking those questions, usually there at the

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<v Speaker 1>point where they have the answers and they just want

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<v Speaker 1>to know if you're telling them the truth. That's what's really,

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<v Speaker 1>I think, kind of mind boggling here, because clearly he

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<v Speaker 1>had to know or there was just this this inflated

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<v Speaker 1>sense of arrogance and that I'm smarter than the FBI,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, for him, first of all to agree to

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<v Speaker 1>sit down and talk to the FBI and then to

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<v Speaker 1>respond to these specific questions that he was being asked

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<v Speaker 1>by the FBI and to deny his involvement of these activities.

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<v Speaker 1>And you're right, he should have known that the FBI

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<v Speaker 1>had the answers to these questions. Probably the more prudent

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<v Speaker 1>course for him to have taken would have been to

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<v Speaker 1>refuse the invitation to be interviewed by the FBI, but

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<v Speaker 1>he didn't. In an interview taped last week with Bloomberg TV,

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<v Speaker 1>Barrett gave no indication that he was aware of the

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<v Speaker 1>impending charges. Would this have been something that that the

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<v Speaker 1>FBI might have or prosecutors might have told him about

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<v Speaker 1>that an indictment was coming, Well, certainly he would have

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<v Speaker 1>been put on notice, I think based upon the the

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<v Speaker 1>interviews that he had with the FBI, because they clearly,

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<v Speaker 1>again as alleged in counts fourth through seven of the indictment,

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<v Speaker 1>they asked him specific questions. He was asked specific questions

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<v Speaker 1>by FBI agents regarding his relationship with UAE officials and

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<v Speaker 1>more specifically, activity specific activities undertaken on behalf of away

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<v Speaker 1>government officials. For example, he was asked whether a Emarati

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<v Speaker 1>official had asked him to download a messaging application to

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<v Speaker 1>communicate directly with these foreign government officials and to acquire

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<v Speaker 1>a dedicated telephone to communicate directly with you a government officials.

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<v Speaker 1>I mean, so here he's being asked specific questions involving

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<v Speaker 1>the nature of his relationship and activities with you a

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<v Speaker 1>government officials that clearly should have raised some red flags

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<v Speaker 1>for Barrack that would cause him to again to know

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<v Speaker 1>that he's under investigation. Now, whether or not he knew

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<v Speaker 1>that the investigation was so far along that an indictment

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<v Speaker 1>was eminent or an indictment would be shortly forthcoming, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>that's a different question. But he certainly knew that he

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<v Speaker 1>was being investigated by the FBI. Does it seem like

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<v Speaker 1>prosecutors have built a strong case against Barrick. It's incumbents

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<v Speaker 1>that the FBI the d o J have a very strong,

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<v Speaker 1>compelling in case, strong credible evidence to convict. And what

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<v Speaker 1>I find interesting about this indictment is it doesn't depend

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<v Speaker 1>on percipient witnesses. It doesn't depend on oh, we've got

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<v Speaker 1>somebody over here and we're going to get this guy

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<v Speaker 1>to flip and we're going to make promises that will

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<v Speaker 1>dismiss charges if he cooperates and testifies. That's not this case.

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<v Speaker 1>And of course those types of witnesses or credibility is

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<v Speaker 1>always highly suspect. This is largely a document based case,

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<v Speaker 1>based upon text messages and other types of communications that

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<v Speaker 1>they've been able to download. And here the prosecutors detail

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<v Speaker 1>multiple communications between Barrick and U, a government official. It's extensive,

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<v Speaker 1>and they have quotes exact language that he used. It

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<v Speaker 1>clearly establishes and proves that he was acting on behalf

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<v Speaker 1>of this foreign government with respect to promoting their interests,

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<v Speaker 1>promoting the foreign government interests with the Trump and ministertion.

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<v Speaker 1>So it'll be difficult to see what legal defense they

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<v Speaker 1>raise in an effort to overcome what appears to be

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<v Speaker 1>a very compelling case, at least on paper. Is there

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<v Speaker 1>a chance of Barrack flipping The Eastern District of New York,

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<v Speaker 1>which brought these charges, is also investigating fraud in the

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<v Speaker 1>Trump inaugural campaign, and Barrick was chairman of the inaugural committee.

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<v Speaker 1>I mean it's it's certainly possible. I think the equation here,

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<v Speaker 1>the calculation I should say that Barry is going to

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<v Speaker 1>undertake is what's the likelihood of conviction? A second, if

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<v Speaker 1>I'm convicted, what kind of sentence am I realistically looking

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<v Speaker 1>to receive? And if ultimately he concludes that yeah, I mean,

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<v Speaker 1>if I'm convicted and I have no prior conviction, I

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<v Speaker 1>haven't been involved in any criminal activity and therefore based

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<v Speaker 1>upon the sentencing guidelines. The sentence is going to be,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, five years, three years, two years, whatever, am

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<v Speaker 1>I be? Relatively a short sentence that may not be

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<v Speaker 1>enough russure, that may not be enough leverage exerted by

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<v Speaker 1>the Department of Justice to cause him to cooperate and

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<v Speaker 1>share information that could implicate former President Trump and maybe

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<v Speaker 1>other allies of former President Trump. Thanks for being on

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<v Speaker 1>the show, Jimmy. That's Professor Jimmy Garule of Notre Dame

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<v Speaker 1>Law School. The June heat wave in the Northwest shattered

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<v Speaker 1>temperature records and caused the deaths of hundreds of people.

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<v Speaker 1>More people lie of extreme heat in the US each

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<v Speaker 1>year than from other natural disasters, but FEMA devotes very

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<v Speaker 1>little of its resources to deal with extreme heat. Columbia

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<v Speaker 1>Law School professor Michael Gerard, Faculty director of the Saban

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<v Speaker 1>Center for Climate Change Law, says FEMA has the authority

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<v Speaker 1>under law to do more in advance to lower heat

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<v Speaker 1>related deaths. He's written a piece for Bloomberg Law and

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<v Speaker 1>he joins me now so to get an idea of

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<v Speaker 1>just how hot it's been. Tell us about July nine

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<v Speaker 1>in Death Valley, California. We're seeing world records being set

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<v Speaker 1>about heat. It was a hundred and thirty degrees fahrenheit

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<v Speaker 1>on July ninth, which seems to be the world record

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<v Speaker 1>for heat. And we're seeing temperatures in the one twenties

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<v Speaker 1>and various parts of the world which had previously been

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<v Speaker 1>almost unheard of. I think a lot of people when

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<v Speaker 1>they think of heat waves, they don't think of heat

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<v Speaker 1>waves as causing a lot of deaths compared to tornadoes

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<v Speaker 1>and hurricanes and floods. But that's just not right, is it.

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<v Speaker 1>That's right? The National Weather Service counts off the number

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<v Speaker 1>of people who die every year from natural disasters, and

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<v Speaker 1>heat is by far the leading cause of death. Heat waves,

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<v Speaker 1>far ahead of floods or tornadoes or hurricane. A lot

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<v Speaker 1>of people die, and these numbers are probably underreported because

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<v Speaker 1>many people who have heart attacks and so forth that

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<v Speaker 1>aren't directly attributed to heat. How much does FEMA do?

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<v Speaker 1>How much time and resources does it devote to heat waves?

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<v Speaker 1>Right now, FEMA does almost thing on heat waves. They

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<v Speaker 1>basically have concentrated on declared emergencies and disasters, and there

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<v Speaker 1>haven't been any about heat waves. Part of the issue

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<v Speaker 1>is that the conventional kinds of disasters like hurricanes and

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<v Speaker 1>tornadoes and floods cause a lot of physical damage. Heat

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<v Speaker 1>waves don't cause so much physical damage, so after they're over,

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<v Speaker 1>they don't require a lot of that recovery. But they

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<v Speaker 1>kill a lot of people, and so far FEMA has

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<v Speaker 1>not really paid much attention to them. Is that because

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<v Speaker 1>the real way to battle heat waves would be environmental changes. Well,

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<v Speaker 1>in the long term, we need to drastically reduce great

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<v Speaker 1>house gas emissions in order to reduce the heat waste,

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<v Speaker 1>but that's going to take a very long time, and

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<v Speaker 1>that's not femus job. But there are lots of things

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<v Speaker 1>that FEMA could help with in the short term that

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<v Speaker 1>would help people cope with heat waves and would greatly

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<v Speaker 1>reduce the depth toll. One of the things you suggest

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<v Speaker 1>in your article is cooling centers. That's right. Some cities

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<v Speaker 1>have set up the centers in convention halls or school

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<v Speaker 1>auditoriums or lots of other buildings that are air conditioned

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<v Speaker 1>and people can just go and hang out when it's

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<v Speaker 1>very hot. Who are seeing temperatures that basically are almost

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<v Speaker 1>impossible to endure if you don't have air conditioning. Lots

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<v Speaker 1>of people don't have air conditioning, it breaks down, So

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<v Speaker 1>these are centers where people can just go and be

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<v Speaker 1>cool and drink water and so forth. So we have

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<v Speaker 1>some of those around the country that is kind of sporadic.

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<v Speaker 1>They're often not well publicized. People have difficulty in getting

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<v Speaker 1>there very often. And so that's something that is similar

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<v Speaker 1>to the emergency shoulders we see after flooding. In that

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<v Speaker 1>kind of thing. It's something where FEMA could could help

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<v Speaker 1>out a great deal. So would FEMA be constructing new centers. No,

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<v Speaker 1>you don't have to build anything. These are all existing buildings.

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<v Speaker 1>It's mostly a matter of organization and publicizing it and

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<v Speaker 1>arranging transportation and maybe some supplies like cots and so forth.

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<v Speaker 1>That no new instruction group be involved. So it seems

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<v Speaker 1>pretty easy. So why wouldn't FEMA be doing this already? Well,

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<v Speaker 1>FEMA didn't used to have the authority to do a

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<v Speaker 1>lot of work in advance of disasters. Their focus has

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<v Speaker 1>been urgency response and then then the aftermath. But in

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<v Speaker 1>two thousand eighteen, Congress amended the law and provided for

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<v Speaker 1>a new program for preparing for emergencies. And I'm arguing

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<v Speaker 1>that FEMA ought to devote a chunk of the money

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<v Speaker 1>under that new program to preparing for heatwave. Do you

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<v Speaker 1>have backing behind you? Are there any other groups that

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<v Speaker 1>are calling for this. We haven't heard a lot of

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<v Speaker 1>calls yet, but we're trying to get the word out

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<v Speaker 1>and I've been in communication with FEMA about this, and

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<v Speaker 1>i know they're looking at it. You suggest some other

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<v Speaker 1>simple things that FEMA can do to lower heat related

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<v Speaker 1>death tolls, like just painting roofs white. That's right. One

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<v Speaker 1>of the big issues we have is called the urban

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<v Speaker 1>heat island effect. It tends to be much hot are

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<v Speaker 1>in cities than in the countryside, and that's largely because

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<v Speaker 1>so much of the surface is covered with buildings and

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<v Speaker 1>pavement and sidewalks and so forth. If you paint the

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<v Speaker 1>roofs of buildings white, that makes it cooler overall, particularly

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<v Speaker 1>inside the buildings. If you grow a lot more trees,

0:14:17.800 --> 0:14:20.200
<v Speaker 1>if you have a lot more vegetation, that can make

0:14:20.200 --> 0:14:24.640
<v Speaker 1>a very substantial difference. We also see racial disparities here.

0:14:24.920 --> 0:14:28.240
<v Speaker 1>It's been shown that the communities that are low income

0:14:28.400 --> 0:14:31.120
<v Speaker 1>or high proportion of people of color tend to be

0:14:31.280 --> 0:14:34.000
<v Speaker 1>hotter in the summer because they have more asphalts of

0:14:34.080 --> 0:14:37.520
<v Speaker 1>tower trees. That's something that can be fixed, and in

0:14:37.560 --> 0:14:40.080
<v Speaker 1>the scheme of things, it's not that expensive. Why aren't

0:14:40.120 --> 0:14:44.520
<v Speaker 1>local communities doing this themselves. Well, some local communities are.

0:14:44.640 --> 0:14:48.080
<v Speaker 1>New York City has something called a Million Trees campaign

0:14:48.800 --> 0:14:50.840
<v Speaker 1>UH to plant a million trees and they have now

0:14:50.880 --> 0:14:53.080
<v Speaker 1>exceeded that. A number of other cities have done it,

0:14:53.160 --> 0:14:55.320
<v Speaker 1>but not nearly as many have done it. And there's

0:14:55.360 --> 0:14:59.520
<v Speaker 1>no organized national effort to try to reduce the urban

0:14:59.560 --> 0:15:02.800
<v Speaker 1>heat island effect. And I think FEMA could really take

0:15:02.840 --> 0:15:05.080
<v Speaker 1>the lead and trying to make sure this happens. Maybe

0:15:05.080 --> 0:15:06.720
<v Speaker 1>wouldn't have to pay for all of it, but they

0:15:06.720 --> 0:15:10.240
<v Speaker 1>could help organize it and provide financial assistance to those

0:15:10.240 --> 0:15:12.960
<v Speaker 1>communities that really don't have the money to do it themselves.

0:15:13.120 --> 0:15:15.360
<v Speaker 1>Let's talk about some of the other legal tools that

0:15:15.440 --> 0:15:20.600
<v Speaker 1>you discussed. So, California and Oregon have set safety standards.

0:15:21.200 --> 0:15:24.480
<v Speaker 1>That's right. At the national level, OSHA has not set

0:15:24.800 --> 0:15:29.080
<v Speaker 1>safety standards for the occupational setting for extreme heat. They've

0:15:29.160 --> 0:15:31.040
<v Speaker 1>been petitioned to do what. They have studies saying they

0:15:31.080 --> 0:15:32.360
<v Speaker 1>had to do it, but they haven't done it yet.

0:15:32.360 --> 0:15:35.520
<v Speaker 1>They're now looking at it. California and Oregon have set

0:15:35.600 --> 0:15:39.560
<v Speaker 1>up heat standards, especially for outdoor workers, you know, farm workers,

0:15:39.760 --> 0:15:42.160
<v Speaker 1>outdoor utility workers, all kinds of other people who have

0:15:42.240 --> 0:15:45.640
<v Speaker 1>to work outside are exposed to heat and it can

0:15:45.680 --> 0:15:50.040
<v Speaker 1>be really dangerous for them. So Oregon and California set

0:15:50.120 --> 0:15:54.160
<v Speaker 1>up standards requiring breaks and shade and water and other

0:15:54.160 --> 0:15:58.000
<v Speaker 1>ways to help reduce the negative health effects of working

0:15:58.000 --> 0:16:01.200
<v Speaker 1>outside in the heat. So you think that that's something

0:16:01.240 --> 0:16:04.760
<v Speaker 1>that OSHA should do. Yes, OSHA should do that. They've

0:16:04.800 --> 0:16:07.880
<v Speaker 1>been petitioned by some some groups to do it, and

0:16:07.920 --> 0:16:10.560
<v Speaker 1>it's something clearly within their authority and it's something that

0:16:10.640 --> 0:16:14.800
<v Speaker 1>they absolutely should undertake. And you mentioned that Arizona has

0:16:15.080 --> 0:16:19.600
<v Speaker 1>put some requirements on landlords. Yeah, almost everywhere landlords are

0:16:19.640 --> 0:16:23.000
<v Speaker 1>required to provide heat in the winter. It's part of

0:16:23.080 --> 0:16:26.360
<v Speaker 1>what's called the warranty of habitability. Arizona has put that

0:16:26.440 --> 0:16:28.480
<v Speaker 1>in the in the summer that then it went when

0:16:28.480 --> 0:16:33.040
<v Speaker 1>it's very hot, landlords have to provide cooling. That's something

0:16:33.080 --> 0:16:37.520
<v Speaker 1>that I think also should be expanded nationwide. We've seen

0:16:37.560 --> 0:16:40.200
<v Speaker 1>in the last few months that places like Washington State

0:16:40.200 --> 0:16:43.720
<v Speaker 1>and Oregon that are usually not very hot and therefore

0:16:43.760 --> 0:16:45.680
<v Speaker 1>a lot of people don't have air conditioning, they can

0:16:45.800 --> 0:16:50.040
<v Speaker 1>oppressively hot. We need to protect the tenants in buildings,

0:16:50.280 --> 0:16:54.080
<v Speaker 1>and imposing this requirement on landlords is one way to

0:16:54.120 --> 0:16:58.840
<v Speaker 1>do that. There's another simple solution. Low income people could

0:16:59.160 --> 0:17:03.960
<v Speaker 1>be given money to buy air conditioners. That's right. There

0:17:03.960 --> 0:17:06.600
<v Speaker 1>are programs that have been around a long time to

0:17:06.680 --> 0:17:10.080
<v Speaker 1>help low income people pay for heating oil so that

0:17:10.160 --> 0:17:13.359
<v Speaker 1>they don't freeze in the winner. A few states provide

0:17:13.560 --> 0:17:16.440
<v Speaker 1>money to buy air conditioners, but a problem is that

0:17:17.000 --> 0:17:19.720
<v Speaker 1>a lot of poor people can't afford the power to

0:17:19.800 --> 0:17:22.320
<v Speaker 1>run the air conditioners. So in addition to helping them

0:17:22.320 --> 0:17:26.119
<v Speaker 1>buy the air conditioners, they also need subsidies for the

0:17:26.160 --> 0:17:28.960
<v Speaker 1>power bills to run the art conditioners. What do you

0:17:29.040 --> 0:17:32.120
<v Speaker 1>do to try to get states and the federal government

0:17:32.160 --> 0:17:35.040
<v Speaker 1>to work on these I think that FEMA is the

0:17:35.119 --> 0:17:38.800
<v Speaker 1>natural agency to organize a nationwide effort to do this.

0:17:38.880 --> 0:17:42.280
<v Speaker 1>We've seen in the last few months these killer heat

0:17:42.280 --> 0:17:44.560
<v Speaker 1>waves that have been hitting parts of the country that

0:17:44.680 --> 0:17:47.879
<v Speaker 1>are not accustomed to it. I think that's increasing overall

0:17:48.040 --> 0:17:51.879
<v Speaker 1>consciousness of the need to deal with heat waves, since

0:17:51.920 --> 0:17:54.800
<v Speaker 1>they are, as I said, the most lethal impact of

0:17:54.920 --> 0:17:57.200
<v Speaker 1>climate change in the United States. A lot more people

0:17:57.240 --> 0:17:59.880
<v Speaker 1>die from heat waves than floods of hurricanes or tourin

0:18:00.080 --> 0:18:03.560
<v Speaker 1>does and it serves national attention like those other kinds

0:18:03.600 --> 0:18:06.800
<v Speaker 1>of weather disasters. Ever see for a long time, how

0:18:06.840 --> 0:18:10.439
<v Speaker 1>has the Biden administration been doing on the environment. I

0:18:10.520 --> 0:18:13.600
<v Speaker 1>think that Biden has put in place a remarkably strong

0:18:13.720 --> 0:18:16.040
<v Speaker 1>team in the White House, at E p A, and

0:18:16.080 --> 0:18:19.920
<v Speaker 1>the Interior Department and and everywhere else. Of the message

0:18:20.000 --> 0:18:24.520
<v Speaker 1>has clearly gone out that the administration is working very

0:18:24.560 --> 0:18:27.800
<v Speaker 1>hard on climate change. Everything that they could do by

0:18:27.840 --> 0:18:30.199
<v Speaker 1>the stroke of a pen, they've pretty much done. In

0:18:30.280 --> 0:18:33.879
<v Speaker 1>terms of rescinding the executive orders from Trump that weakened

0:18:33.960 --> 0:18:37.960
<v Speaker 1>environmental regulations. They're really working very hard that We'll see

0:18:37.960 --> 0:18:40.399
<v Speaker 1>what happens in Congress. The negotiations that are going on

0:18:40.480 --> 0:18:43.480
<v Speaker 1>right now about the Infrastructure Bill. There's a lot that

0:18:43.720 --> 0:18:47.120
<v Speaker 1>Biden can do, and he's doing with his existing legal authority.

0:18:47.200 --> 0:18:49.840
<v Speaker 1>There's a lot more that he could do if Congress

0:18:49.880 --> 0:18:52.919
<v Speaker 1>were to add to that authority and provide the money.

0:18:53.080 --> 0:18:55.040
<v Speaker 1>And we'll see in the days and weeks to come

0:18:55.080 --> 0:18:58.360
<v Speaker 1>if that actually happens. Tell me what there is in

0:18:58.400 --> 0:19:02.640
<v Speaker 1>the Infrastructure Bill that addresses climate change or the environment.

0:19:03.560 --> 0:19:07.240
<v Speaker 1>One of the most important proposals is the Clean Energy

0:19:07.280 --> 0:19:11.480
<v Speaker 1>Standard CIER, a law that a certain percentage, and ultimately

0:19:11.480 --> 0:19:16.520
<v Speaker 1>one of the electricity has to come from zero emission sources,

0:19:16.560 --> 0:19:19.840
<v Speaker 1>which would be renewables and a little bit of remaining nuclear.

0:19:20.520 --> 0:19:25.480
<v Speaker 1>That's one very important issue. There's also money in various

0:19:25.960 --> 0:19:29.600
<v Speaker 1>versions of that for beating up the electric transmission system,

0:19:29.680 --> 0:19:32.639
<v Speaker 1>which is needed to take power generated by wind and

0:19:32.680 --> 0:19:36.560
<v Speaker 1>solar to to where it's needed. There's some money from

0:19:36.600 --> 0:19:41.800
<v Speaker 1>mass transit. There's money for improving water systems. So there's

0:19:41.800 --> 0:19:44.200
<v Speaker 1>a lot of money that it would help the climate

0:19:44.280 --> 0:19:47.320
<v Speaker 1>situation at various versions of the bills, we don't know

0:19:47.840 --> 0:19:53.640
<v Speaker 1>what ultimately emerge. I've read that some environmental advocates are

0:19:53.680 --> 0:19:57.280
<v Speaker 1>disappointed in Biden because they don't think the administration is

0:19:57.320 --> 0:20:01.920
<v Speaker 1>moving fast enough on environment Yeah, the Sunrise Movement and

0:20:02.000 --> 0:20:06.399
<v Speaker 1>a number of other progressive organizations are complaining that Biden

0:20:06.520 --> 0:20:10.160
<v Speaker 1>hasn't gone far enough. I think it's uh, you know

0:20:10.320 --> 0:20:12.720
<v Speaker 1>that he's getting a lot of pushback from the right

0:20:13.000 --> 0:20:16.840
<v Speaker 1>that he's he's also getting pushed back from the left. UM,

0:20:17.119 --> 0:20:20.760
<v Speaker 1>and Biden is making his judgments about how much he

0:20:20.800 --> 0:20:23.840
<v Speaker 1>can push through in Congress. We'll see how it how

0:20:23.880 --> 0:20:29.760
<v Speaker 1>it plays out in Congress. Is this a partisan issue? Oh? Yes, UM,

0:20:30.720 --> 0:20:34.080
<v Speaker 1>Climate change is one of the most partisan issues we've

0:20:34.119 --> 0:20:39.440
<v Speaker 1>ever seen. The statistics show that the current Republican Party

0:20:39.480 --> 0:20:42.560
<v Speaker 1>has adopted as a matter of doctrine that they don't

0:20:42.560 --> 0:20:45.800
<v Speaker 1>believe that human cause climate change is happening, or if

0:20:45.840 --> 0:20:48.199
<v Speaker 1>it is, that, I don't think the government should do

0:20:48.200 --> 0:20:51.760
<v Speaker 1>anything about that. The Democrats are on exactly the opposite side.

0:20:51.800 --> 0:20:54.320
<v Speaker 1>So that's one of the major problems we have, and

0:20:54.440 --> 0:20:57.560
<v Speaker 1>with the Senate split fifty fifty, it's very hard to

0:20:57.600 --> 0:21:02.000
<v Speaker 1>get anything done. It almost seems absurd with the different

0:21:02.080 --> 0:21:05.040
<v Speaker 1>problems we've been having with heat and cold, and that

0:21:05.160 --> 0:21:09.320
<v Speaker 1>people don't believe in climate change. Well, of course it's

0:21:09.320 --> 0:21:11.520
<v Speaker 1>not the only issue where it's absurd that people can't

0:21:11.520 --> 0:21:14.840
<v Speaker 1>think of, as vaccination being number one. But I think

0:21:14.880 --> 0:21:18.760
<v Speaker 1>that the increased terrible climate change problems we've seen, the

0:21:19.160 --> 0:21:23.080
<v Speaker 1>floods and the hurricanes in the US, the catastrophic flooding

0:21:23.080 --> 0:21:26.840
<v Speaker 1>we're now seeing in Europe and China and parts of Africa,

0:21:26.920 --> 0:21:29.879
<v Speaker 1>parts of other parts of Asia, they're all adding up.

0:21:30.800 --> 0:21:34.959
<v Speaker 1>There was a magazine cover the other day saying no

0:21:35.000 --> 0:21:37.680
<v Speaker 1>one is safe. It used to be thought that there

0:21:37.680 --> 0:21:39.840
<v Speaker 1>were parts of the world that were completely immune from

0:21:39.920 --> 0:21:43.000
<v Speaker 1>climate change, but we know that is no longer the case.

0:21:43.240 --> 0:21:47.280
<v Speaker 1>The combination of heat, heat, and wildfires and flooding and

0:21:47.320 --> 0:21:52.320
<v Speaker 1>everything else mean that there are climate related dangers globally,

0:21:53.080 --> 0:21:56.560
<v Speaker 1>and hopefully more people will wake up to that and

0:21:56.640 --> 0:22:00.000
<v Speaker 1>take the decisive action that is needed to drastically reduce

0:22:00.200 --> 0:22:03.480
<v Speaker 1>screenest gas emissions that are causing most of the climate change,

0:22:04.000 --> 0:22:06.879
<v Speaker 1>and take actions to prepare for the climate change that

0:22:07.000 --> 0:22:09.800
<v Speaker 1>is coming regardless of our best efforts. Thanks for being

0:22:09.840 --> 0:22:12.600
<v Speaker 1>on the Bloomberg Laws Show. That's Professor Michael Gerard of

0:22:12.680 --> 0:22:15.280
<v Speaker 1>Columbia Law School, and that's it for the edition of

0:22:15.320 --> 0:22:18.360
<v Speaker 1>the Bloomberg Law Show. I'm June Grosso and you're listening

0:22:18.400 --> 0:22:19.120
<v Speaker 1>to Bloomberg