President Donald Trump’s announcement Thursday that the United States was withdrawing from the Paris climate accord was met with defiance from governors and dozens of mayors who vowed to continue to honor the goals of the accord to reduce global warming.
States
Governors who have proclaimed their continued support for the accord include:
– Charlie Baker, Massachusetts
– Jerry Brown, California
– Kate Brown, Oregon
– Andrew Cuomo, New York
– John Hickenlooper, Colorado
– David Y. Ige, Hawaii
– Jay Inslee, Washington
– Dannel P. Malloy, Connecticut
– Terry McAuliffe, Virginia
– Gina M. Raimondo, Rhode Island
“California will resist this misguided and insane course of action,” Brown said in a prepared statement.
Related: Top CEOs tell the CEO president: You’re wrong on Paris
Cities
A group of 61 mayors said they “will adopt, honor, and uphold the commitments to the goals enshrined in the Paris Agreement.”
The group includes:
– Mayor Martin J. Walsh, Boston
– Bill de Blasio, New York City
– Rahm Emanuel, Chicago
– Eric Garcetti, Los Angeles
– Jim Kenney, Philadelphia
– Mitch Landrieu, New Orleans
– Ed Murray, Seattle
Some of them also decided to show their support by lighting up their city hall buildings Thursday night.
“City Hall is green tonight. Boston stands with the environment. We must protect our future. #ParisAccord,” Walsh wrote on Twitter.
“City Hall shines green tonight because New York City will honor the goals of the #ParisAgreement,” de Blasio said.
Climate Alliances form
The governors of California, New York and Washington State created the United States Climate Alliance to convene states upholding the Paris Agreement and those “taking aggressive action on climate change,” they said in a statement.
“This administration is abdicating its leadership and taking a backseat to other countries in the global fight against climate change,” Cuomo said.
The alliance plans to promote the sharing of information, environmental best practices and also “implement new programs to reduce carbon emissions from all sectors of the economy.”
“While the President’s actions are a shameful rebuke to the work needed to protect our planet for our children and grandchildren, states have been and will continue to step up,” Inslee said.
