Joe Romm writes:

On Tuesday, the United States killed an accord with other Arctic nations on how to address regional challenges.

Why? The Trump delegation, led by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, would not accept an agreement that stated climate change seriously threatened the polar region, Reuters reported. Yet, just last year, the White House released a 1,000-page report by top U.S. scientists explaining that Trump’s anti-climate policies would devastate the Arctic.

So, for the first time since its creation in 1996, the Arctic Council, which represents the eight Arctic nations and indigenous peoples, failed to release any final declaration stating a joint agenda.

But the Trump administration is not satisfied with merely destroying the Arctic by blocking domestic and global climate action. Rather, top officials appear to be cheering it on and mocking the victims of their self-destructive climate policies. [Continue reading…]