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Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk is happy about the changes that have taken place in the White House. Newly elected US President Joe Biden is determined to curb climate change, and his administration's policy is to do so and to support the development of electromobility.
“I'm super fired up that the new administration is focused on climate,” Musk said in an interview with Fortune.
Biden has pledged to re-adhere to the Paris Agreement, an international treaty aimed at limiting global warming and taking action that will lead the US to zero emissions by 2050. During the campaign trail, he also pledged to replace government vehicles with American- made electric vehicles, and is now acting as promised. Upon assuming the presidency, he reaffirmed his intention, and will begin the process of phasing out the use of gas-powered vehicles.
“I think this is great. I feel very optimistic about the future of sustainable energy with the new administration,” Musk said in an interview. "Not that we should get complacent or anything, but the wind is at our back for solving the climate crisis with the new administration."
After the election of Donald Trump in 2016, Musk agreed to join his economic advisory board and the manufacturing jobs initiative council. However, once Trump announced that he was pulling the US out of the 2015 Paris Climate Change Agreement, Musk left the council.
For now, Musk is waiting to get involved again as Biden begins to aggressively enact detailed environmental policies that will undoubtedly be strikingly different from Trump's. In addition to the fact that the US is again joining the Paris Agreement, his administration has announced an accelerated transition to electric vehicles and renewable energy sources.
Musk said he has “not wanted to” reach out yet to Biden, "they have had a lot to do.” But he says aides are already in informal contact with the White House. “My team, being very pro-environment, they know a lot of people that Biden is bringing in.”
Once those White House officials are ready, Musk says, “we will do our best to be helpful to the new administration with respect to climate.”
© 2021, Eva Fox. All rights reserved.
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About the Author
Eva Fox
Eva Fox joined Tesmanian in 2019 to cover breaking news as an automotive journalist. The main topics that she covers are clean energy and electric vehicles. As a journalist, Eva is specialized in Tesla and topics related to the work and development of the company.
