Bernie Sanders went after Hillary Clinton during Thursday’s Democratic presidential debate over her history of being both for and against fracking.
During a back-and-forth over climate change and the Paris climate agreement, Sanders took a shot at Clinton after she touted the agreement which saw China and India commit to curbing their greenhouse gas emissions.
“When you were secretary of state, you also worked hard to expand fracking to countries all over the world,” Sanders said in response to Clinton. “Of course the [Paris] agreement is a step forward. But you know agreements and I know agreements, there’s a lot of paper there. We need to get beyond paper right now.”
“We have got to lead the world in transforming our energy systems — not tomorrow, but yesterday. And what that means … is having the guts to take on the fossil fuel industry,” Sanders said. “Now I am on board [with] legislation that says, you know what? We ain’t going to excavate for fossil fuel on public land. That’s not Secretary Clinton’s position. Let us support a tax on carbon. That is not Secretary Clinton’s position.”
Mere minutes later, co-moderator Errol Louis questioned Clinton over her support for fracking around the world, which she pushed during her tenure at the State Department. She explained that she wants to wean many countries off of coal, adding that she doesn’t think she’s changed her position.
Sanders went on to ask her multiple times if she supports a tax on carbon emissions, to which she did not respond.
