Biden’s massive infrastructure plan is also a climate plan
The White House is preparing for its next big swing on the economy.
Shortly after passing his $1.9 trillion Covid-19 relief package, President Joe Biden is preparing to unveil his “Build Back Better” plan Wednesday during a public address in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The White House discussed an approximately $3 trillion infrastructure package on a call last week with Senate Democrats, but the price tag and final details are still under discussion, a person familiar with the plan told Vox.
Those close to the Biden White House underscore this is a key part of the president’s agenda, and his goal of steering America’s economy toward clean energy and manufacturing. Biden and Democrats see an infrastructure package as the best way to tackle climate change and get the country to net-zero electricity emissions by 2035, by installing more electric vehicle charging stations on the nation’s roads, modernizing the electrical grid, and incentivizing more wind and solar projects. It could be financed at least in part with higher taxes on corporations and the wealthiest Americans.
“I think they’re obsessed with 2035,” former Obama climate adviser John Podesta told Vox in a recent interview, speaking about the Biden White House. “If you stand back and think about buildings, efficiency, transportation, electrification of vehicles, it’s all built on the idea that you’re running clean electrons through that system.” [Continue reading…]