China cons US on green energy agenda

Right before President Biden and Chinese president Xi Jinping met in San Francisco this week, the US State Department and the Chinese Ministry of Ecology and Environment each released a statement on “enhancing cooperation to address climate change.” 

“[T]he United States and China reaffirm their commitment to work jointly and together with other countries to address the climate crisis,” the Sunnylands Statement says. Addressing “energy transition,” the statement declares that both countries support pursuing efforts to triple renewable energy capacity globally by 2030 and accelerate renewable energy deployment as a substitute for fossil fuels. 

CNN notes in its report on the statement that “there were no explicit words from China on whether it would phase out or phase down its use of coal.” Speaking to NPR, Lauri Myllyvirta, lead analyst at the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air said, “the plan is very generic without any measurable emissions targets, so ‘follow-up on that front will be important.’” And Reason assessed the announcement succinctly: “China pledges again to do exactly what it was going to do anyway.”  

You may have doubts about the continued cooperative spirit of the two frenemies fighting climate change together after Biden called Xi a dictator — again — and secretary of state Antony Blinken released the cringe felt ’round the world. Yet when you considers that the US depends on China for the critical elements needed for a green future, and the US keeps cracking down on the fossil fuels required to construct wind turbines and solar panels while China increases their production, it’s no wonder China is more than happy to help us commit to tripling our renewable energy capacity.  

-Teresa Mull

On our radar

NO-SAMA The White House released a statement condemning American social media influencers who discovered Osama bin Laden’s letter justifying the 9/11 terror attacks and decided the al-Qaeda terrorist might have been onto something: “There is never a justification for spreading the repugnant, evil and antisemitic lies that the leader of al-Qaeda issued just after committing the worst terrorist attack in American history,” spokesman Andrew Bates said. 

ERIC ADAMS’S TURKEY DAY Just one week before Thanksgiving, New York City mayor Eric Adams is accused of cheering for a different kind of turkey. A report from Politico notes that Adams attended nearly eighty events celebrating Turkey in the run-up to his mayoral campaign, which federal investigators believe may have accepted illegal campaign contributions from the Turkish government. 

DNC DISASTER Representative Debbie Dingell said a recent pro-Palestinian protest outside of the Democratic National Committee headquarters in Washington, DC “rattled” her more than the January 6 riot at the Capitol. Six police officers were injured during the protest as activists sought to block building exits. 

Biden’s favorite EV company sold for parts

Proterra, the now-bankrupt electric bus battery company promoted on numerous occasions by the Biden administration, has been ripped into pieces and sold to other auto and energy industry leaders. 

It’s a mighty fall for the politically-connected Proterra, which previously boasted that Biden’s policies would take it to new heights. At times, major Democratic Party donors, like Al Gore, George Soros and more, had financial ties to the company. 

Instead, it filed for bankruptcy and Volvo just scooped up its electric battery program for pennies on the dollar, paying $210 million for Proterra Powered, which was valued at $1.6 billion just two years ago. That might seem like a wise purchase given the White House’s continued EV push, but Volvo could encounter the same problem that plagued Proterra for years: the company’s buses were removed from the roads all over America due to performance problems. 

Proterra and its relationship to energy secretary Jennifer Granholm has dogged the White House for years. Granholm owned hundreds of thousands of dollars of Proterra stock while promoting the company’s industry until congressional scrutiny likely forced a sale. 

The rest of Proterra was also sold for vastly less than its recent valuations; Phoenix Motorcars bought its bus manufacturing component, and Cowen Energy bought its vehicle charging line. 

-Matthew Foldi

Santos’s sexy use of campaign funds

Ever since the House Ethics Committee released its damning report on George Santos yesterday, the chatter has been non-stop. Yes, it appears the flamboyant fabulist used campaign funds to subscribe to sex workers on OnlyFans — but whose content is Santos paying for? Two early claims have emerged on Twitter/X. First, from plus-size porn star Leila Lewis. “THIS GUY WAS SUBBED TO ME HAHAHAHA,” she tweeted, following up with “i rated his dick.”

An unenviable prospect.

The other comes from Twitch streamer Soogz1, who boasts 2.3 million Twitter/followers. “my top spender” she wrote yesterday, along with a screenshot purporting to show that a user called George Santos had spent $435,621.13 on her content — $340,752.72 in messages and over $90,000 in tips.

Of course, it’s eminently possible that these OnlyFans girls are pretending to be Santos favorites, in order to go viral and convert that attention into more subscribers — and as Cockburn is also sustained by a subscription-based model, he’d find it hard to blame them if so. If that’s the case, who can we trust to tell us who Santos really subbed to? You’d be hard pressed to argue that the man himself will do so…

–Cockburn

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