A “Climate hawk is [someone] … who work[s] for aggressive steps regarding climate change and clean energy.” Such as, Jay Inslee is a climate Hawk.
A Climate Hawk is also a way to describe someone who comes to understanding climate change implications and the necessity for action through a national security lens.
A Climate Hawk understands that climate change is a threat to our safety and security. Climate Hawks favor taking aggressive action to neutralize the threat. Many Climate Hawks are environmentalists, but one does not need to be an environmentalist to be a Climate Hawk.
Such as, the Admirals and Generals of the Center for Naval Analyses Military Advisory Board who became climate hawks through their increased understanding of and concerns about climate change’s implications for (pdf) and increased threats (pdf) to U.S. national security.
Today, a Climate Hawk is announcing his candidacy in the crowded Iowa Democratic Party primary for the chance to send Koch-funded, Koch-created, Koch-parroting climate-science denier Jodi Ernst to the pasture.
As his announcement video makes clear, Iowa farm boy Vice Admiral Mike Franken, U.S. Navy (retired), places climate change as core to his priorities, as core to his campaign, as core to his understanding of Iowans’ concerns about today and tomorrow.
Today, Washington is even worse.
Republicans are afraid to ever stand up to Donald Trump.
And, DC Democrats aren’t bold enough to confront the climate crisis, the health-care industry, and Wall Street.
Franken understands how the climate crisis is hitting Iowa (with 100, 500, and 1000 year floods happening with unnerving frequency destroying homes and devastating crops; weather weirding creating great uncertainty in (and damage to) Iowa’s farming economy) and embraces how Iowa could truly be ground zero for boosting the economy through aggressive climate action (from exporting wind electricity; to compensating farmers for sequestering carbon; to leveraging Iowa engineering and manufacturing resources for creating and building tomorrow’s energy solutions; to …).
Franken also understands how catastrophic climate change threatens national security. As Deputy Commander of African Command, Franken saw national security implications in real-time — from worsened droughts fostering conflicts (and threats like Somali piracy) to disrupted agricultural economies helping to drive increased refugee flows (such as into Europe). He has learned from experts, like the CNA Military Advisory Board, and considered the strategic risks from unchecked climate chaos … while gaining appreciation of how national security can be strengthened through climate solutions like better built and more resilient infrastructure with distributed clean energy systems and enhanced energy efficiency.
And, just like Mike is, Franken’s life story and resume are rich, serious and substantive.
In summary, as of now, a true Climate Hawk (in all the senses) has now entered the Iowa Senate race.
Notes/relevant: