Donald Trump's choice of running mate JD Vance is a potential disaster as far as climate is concerned.
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According to The New York Times the oil and gas industry supported Vance's Senate campaign and now he is supporting them.
Apparently, Vance does not believe climate change is a threat and has repeatedly attacked President Biden's outstanding Inflation Reduction Act which is financing the transition away from fossil fuels to renewables.
Vance sponsored legislation to repeal a program devised to curb leaks of methane, and also of a bill to undo a rule setting strict emissions standards for cars and light trucks.
He introduced legislation to repeal federal tax credits for electric vehicles, even though Ohio has seen $12 billion in clean energy investment since the law passed, including for electric vehicle manufacturing. Based on his record, this man is a danger to the US and the world.
Jenny Goldie, Cooma, NSW
![JD Vance is a dangerous prospect, a reader says. Picture Shutterstock JD Vance is a dangerous prospect, a reader says. Picture Shutterstock](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/RXMuw2JbrrS7ELSxSY9rkR/0bc4c51f-aceb-4bd9-ae9c-e0d155d1c1bc.jpg/r0_177_4980_2988_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Dutton would be a bad PM
Michelle Grattan's analysis of the sort of PM Peter Dutton might make (July 19) is right on the ball. The prospect of him occupying The Lodge is chilling rather than thrilling.
I'm no Grattan, but I think I can predict what will happen to our energy future under a PM Dutton. Even if a nationally-owned nuclear grid is organised and built expeditiously (a very big if), the Coalition would run up a huge national debt and deficit in doing so.
Electricity prices, as already predicted, will at least double (from their cost at the time of changeover). A Dutton-led Coalition will then resort to form.
To help return to the always desired, but seldom achieved surplus, and help reduce the massive loan debt, a Dutton-led LNP Coalition would savage health, welfare, education and the like.
We can bet he would privatise his nuclear baby (presuming he could find a buyer). I can confidently predict it won't be a fully Australian-owned entity, so never mind any security issues.
While there is no question Labor has to lift its game, any Dutton nuclear plan would be even more disastrous for ordinary Australians.
Eric Hunter, Cook
The outlook is grim
It is easy to become disheartened with politics. Systems no longer work as promised. Big soulless parties are just PR spin fronts for large and influential sponsors. Locally our Legislative Assembly is a reflection of the sponsors and devoid of any care for voters.
The only time voters, real people are even acknowledged is in the lead-up to an election. But even elections are no longer a contest of ideas. They are slick spin campaigns.
The media needs to take some of the blame. But not all the media. The role of social media taking ad revenue and giving nothing back is a running sore. The international control of media is another ongoing problem.
When they came to office Albo had a chance to hold a royal commission into the media in Australia but ran away. The unanswered question is why?
Ray Whitehead, Higgins
On the wrong track
Wind and sunlight are free and abundant, as is hydrogen. The thought of harvesting the energy of all three is very seductive, but despite trillions spent, reliable and affordable energy is in short supply.
Physics, engineering and economics are all against us. When will the penny finally drop for those spending fortunes dismantling our power supplies and ceding great advantage to our competitors like China?
Doug Hurst, Chapman
Anti-Zionism not anti-Semitism
We should condemn anti-Semitism out of hand and be vigilant against it. But we must be equally vigilant about the conflation of anti-Semitism with anti-Zionism. The two are not the same, though Zionists would have us believe that they are.
Many anti-Zionists are Israelis, many are Jews. Conversely many Zionists are neither. Many - perhaps even most - Zionists are US millennial Christians for whom a return of the Jews to Israel is a prerequisite to the "second coming".
Fred Pilcher, Kaleen
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