Anti-woke may only work in the primary

Jul 21, 2023 View in browser   By Jordan Wolman and Debra Kahn THE WEEK THAT WAS Vivek Ramaswamy's anti-corporate crusade may have a political expiration date. | Francis Chung/POLITICO WAKE UP — “Wokeness” is shaping up to be a centerpiece of the Republican presidential primary. Politicians just might have the wrong bogeyman. For all the ruckus Republicans have caused by blaming companies for veering too far left, voters aren’t fully sold, according to a Morning Consult survey released Wednesday and conducted in June of nearly 2,000 voters. Forty-three percent of voters said corporations are pushing “wokeness” too far — a number that drops to 33 percent with regards to Wall Street specifically. Republican candidates’ attempts to out-woke each other may be for naught — or at minimum, a short-term strategy, if the poll is any sign. Morning Consult found that 51 percent of GOP primary voters said fighting woke ideology is a “very important” issue in deciding who to vote for in 2024, compared to 35 percent of all voters. Fifty-seven percent of Republicans surveyed also said it’s a “major threat” — the same amount who said as much for domestic terrorism. That might be a problem for candidates like Vivek Ramaswamy and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who are building their case against corporate America. (Maybe also for the anti-ESG shopping app that just made a seven-figure ad buy with Tucker Carlson.) It shows how Republicans have a tough slog ahead on this issue once the general election heats up, unless they abandon the rhetoric altogether. And it’s become clear that as much as they have to convince members of their own party that a breakup with longstanding allies in the business sector is a smart thing, they’ll have to persuade even more voters to come along for the ride of their changing tune, too. None of this is new, per se. But the implications for 2024 are getting more clear-cut. A report last year from Penn State’s Center for the Business of Sustainability and communications firm ROKK Solutions found that Republicans’ crusade against sustainable investing strategies isn’t resonating with voters — including Republican voters. In that survey, 63 percent of respondents — majorities in both parties — said the government should not set limits on ESG investments, albeit for different reasons. Republicans were even likelier than Democrats to oppose government curbs on ESG investing. Cracks among some Republicans on this issue have been brewing for some time, too. Republican strategists concede that issues involving ESG are nuanced and complex – so the political play is to talk in broader strokes about perceived societal ills. Counterpoint (at least for one candidate): "Ramaswamy is nothing if not audacious," Rich Lowry writes. "It’s the nature of his candidacy that he doesn’t need to win to come out a winner."   JOIN 7/26 FOR A TALK ON THE NEW ENERGY ECONOMY: Join POLITICO's lively discussion, "Powering a Clean Energy Economy," on July 26 to explore the effectiveness of consumer-targeted policies to boost sustainability and create clean energy jobs. How are the Inflation Reduction Act's provisions faring? Which strategies truly sway consumer behavior? Hear from featured speaker, Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.), among other experts. Don't miss this insightful event — register today and be part of the conversation driving America's clean energy future! REGISTER NOW.     EXTREMES HOW HOT IS IT? — Phoenix has gone 21 straight days with 110-plus temperatures. What can it do? Adapting to extreme heat can be complicated and expensive, requiring major infrastructure investment, Daniel Cusick reports for POLITICO's E&E News. It can also be as simple as planting a tree grove or terrascaping a yard. Experts say the problem is most acute in urban areas with heat islands and older, less efficient housing, much of which was built without central air conditioning. Risks are also growing in normally cool climates like the Pacific Northwest, where nearly 300 people died in Oregon and Washington two years ago when the region sat under an oppressive heat dome for more than a week. “This is no longer a southern thing — this is an everywhere thing,” said Kurt Shickman, director of extreme heat initiatives at the Arsht-Rockefeller Resilience Center. CASE STUDIES — Five cities — Dallas, Boston, Atlanta, New Orleans and Columbia, S.C. — are launching efforts to reduce their summer temperatures and flash flooding by repainting roof surfaces to reflect solar rays and installing massive new tree canopies, Minho Kim reports for E&E News. They're the first cohort of a program run by the Smart Surfaces Coalition, a nonprofit that promotes new urban surfaces that reflect heat and absorb rainfall. AROUND THE WORLD NOTHING TO SEE HERE — The U.S. and China failed to reach any concrete climate agreements during Climate Envoy John Kerry’s trip to Beijing this week, Zack Colman reports. The outcome wasn’t unexpected. But the diplomatic discussions at least provide a reset of sorts for the nations — the two biggest emitters — after an icy period of tensions that froze out climate negotiations. Climate change is “probably not our highest priority in dealing with China, but if we can get them to reduce their emissions that would be a good thing,” Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) told POLITICO before Wednesday’s announcement by Kerry that the two have "agreed that we're going to meet intensively." FLEXING ITS MUSCLES — Latin America is done sitting on the sidelines of the global green transition reliant on a lithium treasure hunt. Countries such as Chile, Brazil and Argentina hold some of the world’s largest reserves of materials like lithium, which is needed to power electric vehicles. As the EU eyes Latin America as a way to enrich its green ambitions while building a China-free industry of its own, these countries are now making clear they will no longer accept extractive relationships. “We don’t want to sell lithium to Europe," Argentina’s undersecretary for Latin American and Caribbean affairs, Gustavo Martínez Pandiani, said on the sidelines of a summit between EU leaders and their Latin American counterparts this week. "We want to sell lithium vehicles that run with lithium batteries." Meanwhile, the EU wants to turn itself into the partner of choice for these countries. As part of the summit, Chile and the EU on Tuesday signed a new partnership to integrate “sustainable raw materials value chains, including through joint development of projects.” Antonia Zimmermann and Wilhelmine Preussen have details. Movers and Shakers WIDENING PATH — Capitol Hill veteran Taylor Childress is joining ClearPath, the conservative clean energy advocacy group, as government affairs manager, our Allison Prang reports. ClearPath also hired Frances Wetherbee, a former broadcast journalist, to work as external affairs associate for the organization. YOU TELL US GAME ON — Happy Friday! Welcome to the Long Game, where we tell you about the latest on efforts to shape our future. We deliver data-driven storytelling, compelling interviews with industry and political leaders, and news Tuesday through Friday to keep you in the loop on sustainability. Team Sustainability is editor Greg Mott, deputy editor Debra Kahn, and reporters Jordan Wolman and Allison Prang. Reach us at gmott@politico.com, dkahn@politico.com, jwolman@politico.com and aprang@politico.com. Want more? You can have it. Sign up for the Long Game. Four days a week and still free. That’s sustainability! WHAT WE'RE CLICKING — Academics are warning the Biden administration needs to explicitly consider race in order to stick to its environmental justice commitments, the Washington Post reports. — Climate activists are at it again in the U.K., where they threw an "orange substance" near the 17th hole at the British Open. The AP has pics. — This week's U.S.-China climate talks are bringing out tensions about whether China is wealthy enough to have to start ponying up for climate damages, Reuters reports.   HITTING YOUR INBOX AUGUST 14—CALIFORNIA CLIMATE: Climate change isn’t just about the weather. It's also about how we do business and create new policies, especially in California. So we have something cool for you: A brand-new California Climate newsletter. It's not just climate or science chat, it's your daily cheat sheet to understanding how the legislative landscape around climate change is shaking up industries across the Golden State. Cut through the jargon and get the latest developments in California as lawmakers and industry leaders adapt to the changing climate. Subscribe now to California Climate to keep up with the changes.       Follow us on Twitter Debra Kahn @debra_kahn Greg Mott @gwmott Jordan Wolman @jordanwolman Allison Prang @AllisonPrang   Follow us

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