Election 2020 Count every vote

Election week: So ... what now?

The 2020 election (so far) leaves few certainties.

On Wednesday, the United States completed the three-year process of withdrawing from the Paris Climate Accord. Even with a Biden-Harris victory (which looks increasingly certain as I write this), the U.S. would rejoin the Paris process as something of a reprobate rather than a leader.


Let's go over the precious few certainties in the 2020 election—assuming the apparent victories of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris hold up. (When news organizations projected a Biden-Harris victory Saturday, the President-Elect tweeted a promise that he'd restore the U.S. involvement in the Paris process on his first day in office.)

The Democrats oozed cheerful confidence that they'd overtake the Senate and maybe even slay a few political giants like Lindsey Graham and even Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. No such luck. Not even close. Even "moderate" Senator Susan Collins, seemingly written off by both parties, handily kept her job. This gives us four years' worth of Joe Biden guiding a gridlocked government.

Undoing Donald Trump's four years of environmental rollbacks and staff cuts wouldn't be easy under any circumstances. Trump and McConnell's roaring success at loading three levels of federal courts will have impacts for decades.

As federal environmental enforcement languished, more and more enforcement burden fell on already-stressed state agencies. Exhaustion of state government coffers—notably to battle both the medical and economic sides of COVID-19—will further cripple state efforts.

If Biden is certified as the winner, a flurry of lawsuits, recount demands, unhinged tweets, and more are sure to follow. And Trump's potential for writing last-minute Executive Orders will tax the imagination. (Both parties do this; Bill Clinton's "Roadless Rule" on National Forests is a prime example for Democrats.)

Finally: Indulge me on this one, it's kind of personal.

On November 17, the Benjamin Franklin of climate denial turns 86. Senator Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) just cruised to his fifth full-term victory, beating political novice Abby Broyles by a two-to-one margin.

Which means that on November 17, 2034, his 100th birthday, the Senator has agreed to a sit-down with me to see how his "climate hoax" is going. We left a few details unresolved. Is it 10:30 AM Eastern Time, assuming he's still ensconced in Washington in his seventh term? Or kicking back in Tulsa, which would be Central Time? And have we gone to all-year Daylight Savings Time by then? Is the Senator still alive at 100? Will this reporter make it to age 77? Will Capitol Hill (elevation ~79 feet above current sea level) be Capitol Island? Will Tulsa still be above sea level? (At 722' above current sea level, I think we're good on this one.)

As I read this, I'll cut the Senator a break on the Ben Franklin analogy. Inhofe truly acts and looks 20 years younger than an 86 year-old has any business looking and acting.

History remembers Franklin as a creaky, gout-ridden hulk whose science helped us unravel the mysteries of electricity and meteorology, including discovery of the Gulf Stream. He also carried out a mission for the French Crown to expose Franz Mesmer, a physician who coaxed a ton of money out of wealthy Parisian hypochondriacs with mesmerization, an early and ultimately fully discredited form of hypnotism.

Now there's a guy I'd love to interview about climate denial.

Peter Dykstra is our weekend editor and columnist and can be reached at pdykstra@ehn.org or @pdykstra.

His views do not necessarily represent those of Environmental Health News, The Daily Climate or publisher, Environmental Health Sciences.

Banner photo: Pro-Democracy protests in Washington DC on November 4. (Credit: GeoffLivingston/flickr)

assateague island wetlands bird
Photo by Sara Cottle on Unsplash

Albert C. Lin: The Supreme Court just shriveled federal protection for wetlands, leaving many of these valuable ecosystems at risk

In Sackett v. EPA, a suit filed by two homeowners who filled in wetlands on their property, the Supreme Court has drastically narrowed the definition of which wetlands qualify for federal protection.
Senator Whitehouse & climate change

Senator Whitehouse puts climate change on budget committee’s agenda

For more than a decade, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse gave daily warnings about the mounting threat of climate change. Now he has a powerful new perch.

Can tires turn green?

Tire manufacturers are adopting greener production processes and more renewable materials, but they have yet to get a grip on tire particle pollution.

'I wanted to cry': Devastating risks of spray foam insulation hidden from Vermont homeowners

When asked how a homeowner could assess whether they’re hiring a high-quality insulation installer, Brent Ehrlich, a products and materials specialist at BuildingGreen, said, “I don't really have a good answer to that.”
climate change reshapes California coast
BigStock Photo ID: 430218898
Copyright: NFL1
Available for extended license use

California’s cliffs are crumbling as climate change reshapes the coast

Planners always knew choices would have to be made whether to keep building along the edge of the Pacific. They just didn't think it would happen so quickly.
Arctic warming biodiversity disruptions
Denali National Park and Preserve/Flickr/Commercial use & mods allowedNPS Photo / Alex Vanderstuyfhttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

Just between us squirrels, there might be trouble in the Arctic dating scene

Climate change appears to be disrupting the hibernation of females in the Far North, scientists say, and that could affect mating season.
James Hansen climate warming warning
cereid2/Flickr/

James Hansen warns of a short-term climate shock bringing 2 degrees of warming by 2050

The famed researcher publicly released a preliminary version of a paper-in-progress with grim predictions of short- and long-term warming, but not all climate scientists agree with its conclusions.

climate impacts on Lake Erie
John Beagle/Flickr/Commercial use & mods allowedhttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

Bracing for climate impacts on Lake Erie, the walleye capital of the world

Though fisheries are thriving now, “continuing warming on the trajectory we’re going is not going to be good for walleye and yellow perch.”

From our Newsroom
halliburton fracking

How the “Halliburton Loophole” lets fracking companies pollute water with no oversight

Fracking companies used 282 million pounds of hazardous chemicals that should have been regulated by the Safe Drinking Water Act from 2014 to 2021.

President Joe Biden climate change

Op-ed: Biden’s Arctic drilling go-ahead illustrates the limits of democratic problem solving

President Biden continues to deploy conventional tactics against the highly unconventional threat of climate change.

oil and gas wells pollution

What happens if the largest owner of oil and gas wells in the US goes bankrupt?

Diversified Energy’s liabilities exceed its assets, according to a new report, sparking concerns about whether taxpayers will wind up paying to plug its 70,000 wells.

Paul Ehrlich

Paul Ehrlich: A journey through science and politics

In his new book, the famous scientist reflects on an unparalleled career on our fascinating, ever-changing planet.

oil and gas california environmental justice

Will California’s new oil and gas laws protect people from toxic pollution?

California will soon have the largest oil drilling setbacks in the U.S. Experts say other states can learn from this move.

Stay informed: sign up for The Daily Climate newsletter
Top news on climate impacts, solutions, politics, drivers. Delivered to your inbox week days.