World leaders just wrapped up 2023’s international climate forum, COP28, held in Dubai.
The forum opened on November 30 with an embarrassment for the host country, the United Arab Emirates, when the president of the gathering—who also leads the UAE’s state oil company—was caught using the platform to secretly push fossil fuel deals.
But, Washington also had cause for embarrassment.
After all, the United States is responsible for more cumulative fossil fuel emissions than any other country. And we’re spending more and more resources on a big part of the problem: the Pentagon. The Department of Defense remains the most carbon-intensive institution in the world, responsible for more annual emissions than most countries.
This year, Americans have experienced record-breaking temperatures and dozens of billion-dollar climate disasters, including floods, wildfires, winter storms and hurricanes. The American people deserve safety and security—but plowing more money into the military isn’t going to ensure either.
The United States continues to spend more on its military than the next ten highest spenders combined. Even though the Pentagon recently failed its sixth straight audit, Congress just passed a gargantuan, $886 billion military spending bill.
On top of that massive Pentagon budget, the White House is calling for an additional $106 billion in …read more
Source:: Institute for Policy Studies
