Climate Change isn't a "Con-Job"
“We don’t have time to sit on our hands as our planet burns. For young people, climate change is bigger than election or re-election. It’s life or death.” - Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
Growing up in the world we live in today, climate change seems like just another part of life. It seems inevitable. After all, what can any one person do about it? You can stop using AI, drive an electric vehicle, or avoid long showers. But it never seems like enough, because for each person who tries to help the environment, there are hundreds who don’t.
What we, the people, really need is a government that combats climate change, because our planet is more valuable than any company that destroys it. However, under the current administration, the United States has withdrawn from the Paris Climate Agreement, rescinded the EPA’s endangerment finding for greenhouse gases, and released numerous statements, one of which called climate change “the greatest con job ever perpetrated in the world.” The Trump administration has made clear over and over again that climate change is not an issue they are prepared to address.
Why has the Trump administration been so opposed to climate action? It’s simple: corruption.
CAP reports that Donald Trump made promises with oil industry executives in exchange for large campaign contributions. In 2024, Trump asked oil and gas executives to raise $1 billion for his campaign and told them he’d grant their policy wish list if he won. The investment, he said, would be a “deal” given the taxes and regulation they would avoid under his presidency. He also offered to help fast-track fossil fuel industry mergers and acquisitions if he won. These promises prioritized oil companies’ profits over the welfare of the American people.
It’s clear, Donald Trump has no interest in policies that could slow down and prevent climate change. But if he wasn’t in office, what could our government do about climate change? If we examine other countries throughout the world, many have started to view climate change as the major threat that it is, and have passed laws to help prevent it.
Denmark, for example, passed The Climate Act. Described by the Climate and Clean Air Coalition, it aims to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. It includes tax deductions on electric vehicles, a “final phase-out” of fossil fuel and oil extraction by 2050, and launched research projects to decrease the amount of methane produced by ruminant digestion.
If Denmark, as well as many other nations, could pass laws like these, why can’t we?
Surveys show that roughly seventy-five percent of Americans support regulating climate emissions. According to an article by CBS news, in Jack County, Texas, it’s fifty-eight percent, the lowest of any US county.
That means that in every US county, more than one-half of voters believe that climate change is a problem that should be addressed. And yet, local and federal governments continue to pass legislation that supports large oil companies, and many representatives vote to block bills that would regulate these companies.
The same article suggests that one reason for congress’s opposition towards climate action could be that oil companies, like Exxon, are important lobbyists for congressional members. Exxon has spent around $300 million on lobbying since 1998. In just the last cycle, the oil industry donated more than $400 million to congressional campaigns, a large majority of which were for Republican candidates.
Many of these candidates are afraid to lose the support of these companies if they advocate for or attempt to pass progressive climate change legislation. But as difficult as the situation may seem, it is far from hopeless.
One way American voters can aid in climate legislation is simply by paying more attention to it. Don’t treat it as some far off threat. Climate change is real, and it’s happening now. NBC Miami found that much of Miami will be underwater by 2060. At that same time, non-coastal areas are also likely to experience catastrophic flooding, which can destroy homes, neighborhoods, and cities. Learning to confront these harsh realities is a seemingly insignificant but crucial step in aiding the reduction of climate change.
Next, pay attention to climate change when you vote. If a candidate doesn’t believe in passing legislation to combat the issue, take note of that. I’m not saying that a candidate’s views on environmental topics should be the deciding factor on whether or not they receive your vote, but it should be an issue of high priority, especially in younger generations that will have to grow up with this impending threat hanging over their heads. We need to hold our government responsible. We need to demand environmental action, as this is our only planet. We can’t mess it up.
Keep doing the little things, like using renewables and turning off the water while you brush your teeth, because they can add up. But don’t make that the only thing you do. Learn a candidate’s opinions on climate policy before you cast your vote. Call your representatives and ask them to support climate policies. Our government is meant to support the people, not the profits of large oil companies. If we, together, hold our leaders accountable and stand firm in our belief, we might be able to stop climate change before it’s too late.
https://www.cbsnews.com/politicalclimate/
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/jan/23/big-oil-445m-trump-congress
https://www.ccacoalition.org/partners/denmark
https://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/will-miami-be-underwater-someday/3119902/