FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 1, 2024
Contact:
Rebecca Stoner, rebecca.stoner@priceofoil.org
Valentina Stackl, valentina@priceofoil.org
Oil Change U.S. responds to Vice Presidential debate
In response to tonight’s vice presidential debate, Collin Rees, Campaign Manager at Oil Change U.S., released the following statement:
“Tim Walz and JD Vance debated while communities across the South reel from the devastating impacts of Hurricane Helene, one of the deadliest and costliest storms in U.S. history. Over 160 are dead, hundreds are missing, and millions remain in dire need of food, water, and power — yet Vance brazenly dismissed established climate science, while Walz touted a deadly ‘all-of-the-above’ energy policy incompatible with the urgent climate action we know is necessary.
“Disasters like Helene are driven and turbo-charged by fossil fuels. We can’t solar-panel our way out of this crisis while continuing to drill and frack. Today’s catastrophes demand bold, uncompromising leadership. Tim Walz and Kamala Harris must step up to halt fossil fuel expansion, champion clean energy, and advance a just phaseout of oil, gas, and coal to protect our communities from escalating climate impacts.
“Tonight’s debate took place in the context of escalating regional war in the Middle East. Both candidates bragged about their support of Israel and its brutal wars against the Palestinian and Lebanese people. This must end. The last thing the American people need is for billions in public money to be spent bombing residential neighborhoods, killing civilians, and displacing millions. Hurricane Helene shows us even more clearly that our leaders must invest instead in preventing climate disasters and rebuilding communities when they strike.”
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