Former President Donald Trump shared talking points on climate change and the economy on his Truth Social platform, leading to an abundance of criticism.
The bullet points, originating from former EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler, highlighted key messages for Trump to convey during the debate. Wheeler's suggested remarks emphasized Trump's administration's accomplishments in reducing CO2 emissions while promoting American energy dominance.
One of the points stated, "Under my Administration, CO2 emissions went down, and at the same time, we became more American energy dominant, which helps Americans at the gas pump and with their electricity bills."
Several of Trump's loudest critics took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to mock the ex-prez for sharing the memo and pointed out the numerous lies throughout the post.
One user wrote, "Wow, spoiler alert, he's an absolute moron."
Another shared a screenshot of the Truth Social post, commenting: "CO2 emissions went down because of the pandemic and you cut nearly every safety guardrail we had in place. Not all of us have the memory of a goldfish."
A third user commented, "These talking points were approved by coal lobbyists everywhere. They literally want to burn this planet to death."
Another bullet raised concerns about Biden's policies, specifically mentioning the rejoining of the Paris Climate Accord. Wheeler's message criticized this move, claiming it would result in sending American dollars overseas and benefiting countries like China. The excerpt also criticized Biden's decisions on energy.
"Because of Biden’s climate and tariff policies everyone is buying Chinese solar panels instead of American energy," the post said. "Joe Biden is shutting down U.S. energy, canceling pipelines, stopping federal leases. We still need the energy. That means we are importing more energy from countries that aren’t our friends. When you transport gas halfway around the world, it means more CO2 emissions."
The talking points presented by former President Trump marked a shift from his previous stance on climate change. Historically, Trump has dismissed climate change as a "hoax" and aimed to roll back regulations on the fossil fuel industry.
Wheeler's messages, however, acknowledge the relationship between climate change and greenhouse gas emissions, reflecting a nuanced approach to the issue.
When President Biden ran for president in 2020, he promised to spend billions of dollars to “save the world” from climate change. Executives from First Solar, the largest domestic maker of solar panels, donated over $2 million to Democrats in 2020, including $1.5 million to the Biden campaign.
After the former Obama VP won, the company spent $2.8 million more lobbying his administration and Congress.
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Trump and Biden are set to face off against one another on Thursday, June 27, at 8 p.m. EST on CNN during the first 2024 presidential debate.
Mediaite provided quotes and sources used in this article.