GRAND CANYON VILLAGE, Arizona—President Joe Biden delivered a speech at the Grand Canyon on Tuesday, aiming to promote his climate policies on the one-year anniversary of the Inflation Reduction Act and to reverse his poor approval ratings, which present a major hurdle in the 2024 presidential election.
Mr. Biden highlighted his administration’s “historic investments” in climate policies and alternative energy sources. He also announced the creation of a new national monument surrounding Grand Canyon National Park, which will protect roughly 1 million acres and limit uranium mining. It will be the president’s fifth new national monument.
Local tribal leaders and environmental activists have spent years fighting to prevent uranium mining around the park, which they claim poses danger to nearby water sources.
“Folks, our nation’s history is etched in our people and our lands. Today’s action is going to protect and preserve that history,” Mr. Biden said during his speech at the old airport, Red Butte Airfield, which was closed when Grand Canyon Airport opened in 1967.
The president claimed that this summer’s record temperatures have affected more than 100 million Americans. He also mentioned that Phoenix recently saw 31 days in a row of temperatures at or over 110 degrees Fahrenheit.
Mr. Biden stated that excessive heat is the leading weather-related cause of death in the United States.
Mr. Biden then continued to praise his policies, arguing that they have resulted in investments in climate control, alternative energy sources, and environmental justice, as well as the creation of union jobs.
According to the White House, the president’s economic strategy has already resulted in more than $100 billion in private-sector investments in domestic alternative energy manufacturing.
“We’ve taken unprecedented action to combat the climate crisis. Last year, I signed the largest climate bill in history, not only in the United States, literally in the history of the world,” Mr. Biden told the crowd at the Grand Canyon.
Approval Ratings on Climate, Economy
According to a recent poll by the Washington Post and the University of Maryland, the majority of Americans (57 percent) disapprove of the president’s handling of climate change.While Mr. Biden continues to promote how his climate policies have produced new jobs and boosted manufacturing, the poll indicated that Americans are unaware of the specifics of his policies. About 71 percent of respondents stated that they had heard “little” or “nothing at all” about the Inflation Reduction Act.
When it comes to Mr. Biden’s economic agenda, voters also remain unconvinced and skeptical.
In June, U.S. inflation was 3 percent annually, a significant decline from its peak of 9.1 percent a year earlier. Despite this slowing in inflation, prices remain uncomfortably high when compared to levels seen at the start of Mr. Biden’s term.
Since the president took office in January 2021, the consumer price index has surged by 17 percent. Notably, food prices have risen by 19 percent, energy costs have experienced a staggering 38 percent increase, and housing costs have climbed by 16 percent during his presidency. These huge price changes underscore the ongoing concerns regarding inflation and its impact on the cost of living for American households.
The president will travel to Albuquerque, New Mexico, on Tuesday afternoon for a reelection fundraiser. He’s also slated to give a speech on Wednesday about the Inflation Reduction Act and how it’s creating a alternative energy manufacturing boom a year after it was signed into law.
The president will then fly to Salt Lake City, Utah, to deliver remarks on the one-year anniversary of the PACT Act. According to the White House, the law “is the most significant expansion of benefits and services for toxic-exposed veterans and survivors in over 30 years.”
Biden won narrowly in Arizona, a crucial battleground state, and New Mexico is regarded as safe for Democrats. Utah, on the other hand, is a Republican stronghold.
