A Green New Deal is fiscally responsible. Climate inaction is not

Real economic responsibility means sustaining the communities and physical resources on which society is built

In the coming days, the Senate majority leader, Mitch McConnell, plans to hold a vote on the Green New Deal resolution recently introduced by congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Senator Edward Markey (D-MA). Despite polls showing broad bipartisan support for a Green New Deal, McConnell hopes his ploy will divide Democrats and boost the GOP talking point that the plan is fiscally irresponsible.

While McConnell and other critics seem to think that they can defeat the Green New Deal by repeating a tired mantra - "we can't afford to do it" - the real question is: how can we afford not to? Without bold action to tackle climate change, toxic pollution and economic and racial inequity, our society will only see rising fiscal burdens. A Green New Deal would not only help us avoid mounting costs - it also would stimulate broad-based demand in the economy by investing in real drivers of economic prosperity: workers and communities. That's in stark contrast to the GOP's expensive recent policy priority - the nearly $2tn tax cuts of 2018 - which did little more than enrich stateless mega-corporations and the wealthiest investors.