{"id":41477,"date":"2025-11-12T03:14:54","date_gmt":"2025-11-12T03:14:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/?p=41477"},"modified":"2025-11-12T03:14:54","modified_gmt":"2025-11-12T03:14:54","slug":"california-governor-gavin-newsom-slams-trump-absence-at-climate-conferencetraffic_sourcerss","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/2025\/11\/12\/california-governor-gavin-newsom-slams-trump-absence-at-climate-conferencetraffic_sourcerss\/","title":{"rendered":"California\u2019s Gavin Newsom slams Trump absence at COP30 climate conference | Climate Crisis News"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div aria-live=\"polite\" aria-atomic=\"true\">\n<p>One of the most notable absences at this week\u2019s United Nations Climate Change Conference reflects the leadership of one of the largest greenhouse gas emitters in the world: the United States.<\/p>\n<p>The administration of President Donald Trump has declined to send any top-level officials to Belem, Brazil, for this year\u2019s edition of the annual event, known as COP30.<\/p>\n<section class=\"more-on\">\n<h2 class=\"more-on__heading\">Recommended Stories<!-- --> <\/h2>\n<p><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">list of 3 items<\/span><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">end of list<\/span><\/section>\n<p>But in Trump\u2019s absence, state and local officials have arrived to reaffirm the US commitment to climate change policies \u2014 and to take shots at the Republican leader.<\/p>\n<p>On Tuesday, one of those politicians took centre stage: California Governor Gavin Newsom, Trump\u2019s longtime sparring partner in the Democratic Party. He is widely speculated to be a contender for the 2028 presidential elections.<\/p>\n<p>Appearing on a series of panels, Newsom denounced the Trump administration\u2019s lack of representation at COP30 as an abdication of duty.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI \u200acome here with humility, coming from the United States. I\u2019m very mindful that the Trump administration has abandoned any sense of duty, responsibility or leadership as it relates to the issues that bring us all here together,\u201d Newsom said at a ministerial meeting.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s an abomination. It\u2019s a disgrace. But rather than complaining about it, we\u2019re trying to do something about it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He pitched his leadership as a contrast to Trump\u2019s and sought to position California\u2019s efforts as having bipartisan appeal.<\/p>\n<p>In touting California as an innovator in clean energy initiatives, Newsom cited Republican leaders from the state, including Ronald Reagan and Richard Nixon, as spearheading efforts to reduce water and air pollution.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m here because I don\u2019t want the United States of America to be a footnote at this conference, and I want you to know that we recognise our responsibility, and we recognise our opportunity,\u201d Newsom told the COP30 audience.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"a-political-pivot\">A political pivot<\/h2>\n<p>Newsom\u2019s comments come at a critical juncture in his political career: Limited to two terms as governor, he is slated to exit office after the 2026 midterm elections.<\/p>\n<p>The Democratic leader has spent his final years as California\u2019s governor building an increasingly national and international profile. In 2023, for instance, he travelled to China, also on the premise of forging international bonds to tackle climate change.<\/p>\n<p>And during the 2024 presidential race, he emerged as a gadfly to challenge Republican policies. He faced Republican presidential candidate Ron DeSantis in a televised Fox News debate and served as\u00a0a prominent surrogate for the scuttled campaign of then-President Joe Biden, who exited the race over concerns about his age.<\/p>\n<p>Trump, the victor in the 2024 race, has repeatedly taken aim at Newsom since his inauguration in January.<\/p>\n<p>The two politicians have clashed over wildfire suppression, immigration policies and Trump\u2019s decision to deploy federal troops to US cities. Trump even gave the California governor one of his trademark nicknames \u2014 \u201cNewscum\u201d \u2014 and mused in June that it would be a \u201cgreat thing\u201d if the Democrat were arrested.<\/p>\n<p>Newsom, meanwhile, took aim at Trump\u2019s international and domestic policies at Tuesday\u2019s climate conference.<\/p>\n<p>By failing to send representation to COP30, Newsom argued that the US had created an opening for China, the country\u2019s economic and political rival, to exert greater power on the global stage.<\/p>\n<p>\u201c\u200aChina is here. Only one country\u2019s not here: United States of America,\u201d Newsom said.<\/p>\n<p>While Trump has used tariffs on foreign imports as a tool to combat China\u2019s growing sway, Newsom maintained that, by stepping away from climate initiatives and clean energy technology, the US was losing ground economically.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is not about electric power. This is about economic power. And we, in the state of California, are not going to cede that race to China,\u201d Newsom said.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"trump-s-climate-policies\">Trump\u2019s climate policies<\/h2>\n<p>Trump has been vocal in his opposition to emission-lowering policies, going so far as to claim that climate change is a \u201choax\u201d and a \u201ccon job\u201d, a position that disregards the scientific consensus linking fossil fuel usage to long-term effects on the global climate.<\/p>\n<p>At September\u2019s UN General Assembly, for instance, Trump asserted that countries around the world had been \u201cdevastated\u201d by the \u201cfake energy catastrophe\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>He also berated world leaders for attempting to impose policies that capped carbon emissions.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAll these predictions made by the United Nations and many others, often for bad reasons, were wrong,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey were made by stupid people that have cost their countries fortunes and given those same countries no chance for success. If you don\u2019t get away from this green scam, your country is going to fail.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Trump had campaigned for re-election with the slogan, \u201cDrill, baby, drill\u201d, and since returning to the White House, he has sought to make good on his pledge to open federal lands to oil and gas exploration.<\/p>\n<p>On Tuesday, while Newsom appeared in Brazil, The Washington Post newspaper revealed that the Trump administration is weighing a draft proposal to allow offshore drilling along the California coastline.<\/p>\n<p>Such activity has largely tapered off in recent decades, due to high-profile oil spills, and California prohibits new oil rigs within state waters, but that area is limited to the waters within three miles \u2013 or about 4.8km \u2013 of the shore.<\/p>\n<p>Democrats, including US Representative Mike Levin, have sought to pass legislation to protect the state\u2019s coastline from further drilling, but to no avail. But Newsom on Tuesday said that Trump\u2019s proposal was \u201cdead on arrival\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>He also questioned why news of the drilling proposal broke during the COP30 meeting.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe intentionally aligned that to the opening of COP,\u201d Newsom said.<\/p>\n<p>He pointed out that offshore drilling faces bipartisan opposition in Trump\u2019s adopted home of Florida, where his Mar-a-Lago resort sits on the edge of the Atlantic Ocean.<\/p>\n<p>\u201c\u200aI also think it remarkable that he didn\u2019t promote it in his backyard at Mar-a-Lago. He didn\u2019t promote it off the coast of Florida,\u201d Newsom said, signalling a double standard. \u201cThat says everything about Donald Trump.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"connecting-with-voters\">Connecting with voters<\/h2>\n<p>Newsom\u2019s broadside against Trump briefly reached beyond his opposition to the Republican president\u2019s pro-fossil fuel policies.<\/p>\n<p>When asked about Trump\u2019s repeated air strikes against maritime vessels alleged to be drug-smuggling boats, Newsom delivered a fiery invective.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat happened to due process? What happened to the rule of law?\u201d Newsom asked. \u201cI believe in the rule of law. I don\u2019t believe in the rule of Don. That\u2019s what we\u2019re up against in the United States of America. I don\u2019t want to lose my republic.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Since September 2, the Trump administration has carried out at least 19 known air strikes in the Caribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean, killing approximately 75 people.<\/p>\n<p>No evidence has been provided publicly to justify the bombing campaign, and the identities of the deceased remain unknown.<\/p>\n<p>Legal experts have denounced the attacks as a form of extrajudicial killing, and leaders at the United Nations have called for an end to the military campaign as a violation of the UN Charter.<\/p>\n<p>The Trump administration has defended the violence as necessary to interrupt drug trafficking into the US. It has also moved to label cartels in Latin America as \u201cinternational terrorist organisations\u201d and \u201cenemy combatants\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>But Newsom argued that such actions were unacceptable, and called on the international community to stand up to Trump.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOur politics needs to change, and I hope our international partners understand that,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s chilling to me to see those scenes of the United States of America blowing up boats with no transparency, no advice and consent with the United States Congress.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>At another COP30 event, entitled \u201cAmerica Is All In\u201d, Newsom doubled down on his call for political change in the US, underscoring that Trump\u2019s power is \u201ctemporary\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>\u201c\u200aHe\u2019s an invasive species. He\u2019s a wrecking ball president,\u201d Newsom said.<\/p>\n<p>When pressed for solutions that would connect with voters, the California governor encouraged world leaders to find a unifying approach, particularly when it comes to combatting climate change scepticism.<\/p>\n<p>Emission-lowering goals \u2014 like limiting global temperature increases to 1.5 degrees Celsius \u2014 felt abstract to most of his constituents, Newsom argued.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think we have to use different language,\u201d he said. \u201cThe vast majority of my audience doesn\u2019t know what Celsius is. \u200aYou\u2019re talking 1.5 degrees Celsius. How many more degrees is that in Fahrenheit? We talk about greenhouse gas emissions. Where are they? Do they float in the sky, or where do they land?<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe don\u2019t understand. We have to use better metaphors. We have to change our language.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>But the California governor was coy when asked about his own ambitions to potentially succeed Trump as president. \u201cI\u2019m not going to take the bait,\u201d he said to laughter.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n#Californias #Gavin #Newsom #slams #Trump #absence #COP30 #climate #conference #Climate #Crisis #News<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>One of the most notable absences at this week\u2019s United Nations Climate Change Conference reflects the leadership of one of&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":41478,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-41477","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mzansi"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41477","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=41477"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41477\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":41479,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41477\/revisions\/41479"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/41478"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=41477"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=41477"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=41477"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}