Advertisement
When world leaders meet in Dubai this week to discuss climate change, President Joe Biden will not be among them, even as he has put green policies at the center of his administration. The United Nations ‘Conference of the Parties’ on climate, better known as COP28, starts on Thursday. But according to a public schedule from the White House, the US president should light the national Christmas tree in Washington instead of flying to the Middle East.
Biden has attended the last two summits, but officials said he was unlikely to hold them even though King Charles III and Pope Francis will join leaders from nearly 200 countries. On Sunday, he will join Bee Gee Barry Gibb and rapper Queen Latifah at a reception for Kennedy Center Honorees. His climate envoy John Kerry will be there. “They’ve got the war in the Middle East and a war in Ukraine, there’s all kinds of things going on,” Kerry previously told reporters when asked about the president’s plans.
Biden’s absence was first revealed by a White House official in the New York Times on Sunday. “While we do not have any travel updates to share with the President at this time, the Administration looks forward to a robust and productive COP28 that will include Special Envoy John Kerry, National Climate Advisor Ali Zaidi and Senior Advisor John Podesta, who will continue to build on the historic government actions to tackle the climate crisis,” a spokesperson said.
Biden’s absence was first revealed by a White House official in the New York Times on Sunday. “While we do not have any travel updates to share with the President at this time, the Administration looks forward to a robust and productive COP28 that will include Special Envoy John Kerry, National Climate Advisor Ali Zaidi and Senior Advisor John Podesta, who will continue to build on the historic government actions to tackle the climate crisis,” a spokesperson said. Pictured: Barry Gibb.
It also reports that voters would rather have another Republican in the Oval Office than Biden. An unnamed candidate would now beat him by 48 to 37 percent in a hypothetical contest. A Messenger/Harris poll showed Trump, the clear frontrunner for the Republican nomination, would beat him by seven points, 47 percent to 40 percent. His campaign insists the numbers tell only part of the story, pointing out that only one poll matters: the election on November 5 next year.
Yet White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre appeared to concede last week that there was a sense of crisis behind the scenes. She was asked during her regular daily briefing about polls showing voters thought Biden was too old and that his approval ratings had hit record lows. “What I want to say to you is that, you know, we’re not going to change the minds of Americans. I understand that,” she said. “Americans are going to feel how they feel, and we’re going to respect that.” Read the full story: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12796271/Biden-Cop-28-climate-summit-Dubai.html?ito=msngallery
Want more stories like this from the Daily Mail? Visit our profile page here and hit the follow button above for more news you need.