Several Republican lawmakers ousted the Biden administration climate czar John Kerry on Wednesday after Fox News reported that the former secretary of state flew a private jet in 2019 to receive an award for climate leadership in Iceland.
Kerry flew in private to receive the Arctic Circle award for bringing “a consistent voice urging American authorities to commit to addressing environmental issues,” said the Icelandic channel RUV. Critics of the Republican Party argued that Kerry’s actions did not match his words on the subject of climate change.
JOHN KERRY TOUCHED A PRIVATE JET FOR ICELAND FOR AN ENVIRONMENTAL AWARD
“Why does John Kerry pretend that the rules don’t apply to him?” tweeted Senator Bill Cassidy, R-La. “I’m not sure whether flying around the world in a private jet while trying to take the job of workers who supply their fuel is a winning strategy as secretary of climate.”
Senator Tom Cotton, R-Ar., Referred to Kerry as a “fraud” for using a private plane.
“John Kerry told the pipeline workers whose jobs were destroyed by the Biden administration to” go and install solar panels, “said Cotton.” But can’t Kerry sacrifice enough to fly commercial? What a fraud. “
Former North Carolina deputy Mark Walker and other Republicans also expressed their views on the matter.
“Was the award for hypocrisy or for the number of people he sent to unemployment in the past two weeks?” Walker said.
In 2019, Kerry faced criticism from Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, who led the Arctic Circle Roundtable and noted the use of a private plane to fly to the event, according to RUV.
Kerry defended his actions in an interview obtained by Fox News, arguing that he took steps to offset the carbon emissions from his travels.
“If you offset carbon, it is the only choice for someone like me, who is traveling the world, to win this battle,” said Kerry. “I negotiated the Paris agreements for the United States. I’ve been involved in this fight for years. I negotiated with President Xi to bring President Xi to the table so that we could get Paris.
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“And I believe, the time it takes me to get somewhere, I can’t sail across the ocean, I have to fly to meet people and get things done,” added Kerry. “But what I’m doing, almost full-time, is working to win the battle for climate change. In the end, if I make up for it and contribute my life to it, I won’t be put on the defensive.”
Biden named Kerry as his government’s special envoy for climate issues when he took office last month. On his first day in office, Biden took executive steps to re-enter the United States in the Paris Climate Agreement after a waiting period of about 30 days.