2020 roundup: Inslee teases climate change-focused candidacy
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee sketched out the contours of a climate-change focused presidential candidacy in a new interview with The Atlantic, the latest Democrat to inch closer to a bid.
He told the magazine that he's "laying the groundwork that would make this a feasible thing in the relatively short term," pointed to Iowa polling that shows climate change a top issue for caucus-goers and argued he's ready to take on Donald Trump.
"When you’ve been working on something for over a decade, and now seeing people awakening to that, it’s just really gratifying and heartening," Inslee said of the country's views on climate change, adding that there is an "appetite for someone who has credibility and a long track record and, most importantly, a vision statement. It’s changed to show an opening in a Democratic primary, I believe.”
Inslee was careful not to formally announce anything—the story says that he's working on donors and is expected to launch a presidential exploratory committee. But the interview is proof that Inslee is serious about his presidential aspirations, hopeful that he can ride the issue to become the Democratic Party's first presidential nominee from west of Texas.
The governor may not be the only one relying on the issue for a primary boost. Billionaire environmentalists Tom Steyer and Michael Bloomberg (the latter the former mayor of New York City) have both made the issue central pieces of their political agenda.
And many other candidates have made the issue an early priority, including Massachusetts Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who railed against the oil industry in a video announcing her exploratory committee and has signaled support for the "Green New Deal," the environmental plan that progressives like Congresswoman-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has promoted.
While 2019 may be in its infancy, the year is already ushering in some new developments in the Democratic quest for the 2020 presidential nomination.
Former Housing and Urban Affairs Secretary Julián Castro is expected to declare his presidential bid when he holds a Jan. 12 event in Texas, and Warren is headed to Iowa this week to hold four events in the state on the heels of her exploratory committee launch.