Watch CBS News

As Republicans Debate, Biden Knocks Climate Change Doubters

ANAHEIM (CBSLA.com/AP) — Taking aim at his potential political opponents, Vice President Joe Biden railed Wednesday against Republicans who "deny climate change" and want to shut down the federal government over funding for Planned Parenthood, and pleaded with them to "just get out of the way."

LISTEN TO KNX 1070 NEWSRADIO FOR LIVE TRAFFIC UPDATES

Biden came to California, a national leader on clean energy, to tout solar technology and ramp up pressure on the U.S. and other nations as the Obama administration presses for a successful finish to global climate talks. Yet his visit was infused with 2016 overtones, and he playfully mocked Republicans who reject mainstream climate science that says humans are contributing to warmer temperatures.

"I think if you pushed them, they'd probably deny gravity as well," Biden said.

The California swing brought Biden to the same corner of the state as the pack of Republican presidential candidates, who descended on the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library for their second televised debate on Wednesday night. Addressing a solar power summit in Anaheim, Biden offered a prediction that viewers would hear more skepticism about climate change from the pack of GOP candidates participating in the debate.

He also called out the billionaire Koch brothers - the Democratic Party's preferred boogeymen - for leading efforts to stymie renewable energy development, though he added sardonically that they were "fine guys, as I understand it."

"We need to set an example for the whole world by eliminating these wasteful, unnecessary subsidies," Biden said, arguing that special interests are fighting to preserve federal tax benefits that the energy industry enjoys.

As he considers a late entrance into the 2016 presidential race, Biden has started to speak out more directly against the Republican candidates he would face if he won his party's nomination. Addressing Hispanics at a reception on Tuesday night, he lashed out at GOP front-runner Donald Trump and said his "sick" message of xenophobia "will not prevail."

Biden's California trip was designed to give a boost to a key element of President Barack Obama's agenda. World leaders are working feverishly to finish a global climate treaty by December, and the vice president's next stop in California was a U.S.-China Climate Leaders Summit in Los Angeles, where the world's two largest polluters are aiming to ramp up pressure on other countries to match the ambitious pledges to cap or curb emissions that the U.S. and China have already laid out.

Taking the stage in Los Angeles, Biden cast himself as having been ahead of the curve on climate, citing a bill he introduced in 1986. Calling the U.S.-China relationship critical to fighting climate change, Biden invoked his longstanding relationship with Chinese President Xi Jinping, whom Biden courted when he was China's vice president.

"Tell him I miss him," he told visiting Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi, who met with Biden at the summit to prepare for Xi's state visit to the White House next week.

While in Los Angeles, Biden made time for dinner with late-night TV host Jimmy Kimmel and Showtime network President David Nevins at the home of L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti. He also squeezed in a session with the secretary-treasurer of the Culinary Workers Union, whose endorsement is key for presidential candidates in the competitive state of Nevada.

The vice president is deeply immersed in deliberations with his family and advisers about whether to enter the 2016 presidential race. In recent days, Biden has opened a window into those deliberations, describing his lingering doubts about whether he has the emotional strength to mount a viable campaign just months after his son, Beau, died from brain cancer.

At the same time, Biden has kept up an intensive travel schedule, crisscrossing Florida, Georgia, New York and now California, stops that have done little to quell speculation that he's laying the groundwork for a potential campaign. On Thursday, Biden planned speeches on transportation and sexual assault in Ohio and Michigan - two battleground states that will play key roles in electing the next president.

In tandem with Biden's trip, the White House announced that 11 Chinese cities and provinces would max out their emissions earlier than China's national goal of 2030. Biden also announced more than $120 million for new and existing clean energy projects in 24 states.

To avoid possible traffic congestion during Biden's visit, police advised avoiding the following areas Thursday:

— From 6 a.m. to 8 a.m., Santa Monica Boulevard between Rodeo Drive and Sawtelle Boulevard, Imperial Highway between Sepulveda Bouelvard and Vista Del Mar and Pershing Drive between Imperial Highway and Manchester Avenue.

Rodeo Drive between Wilshire and Charleville boulevards, and El Camino Drive between Wilshire and Charleville boulevards will remain closed from about 11 a.m. today through 7 a.m. on Thursday.

From 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. today, a hard closure will remain in effect on 6th Street between Bronson Avenue and Lorraine Bouelvard and on Irving Boulevard between 5th Street and Wilshire Boulevard.

Metro bus route number 20 may be affected due to the street closures. Riders have been advised to check for alternate routes if needed.

For traffic conditions, listen to KNX 1070 NEWSRADIO.

(TM and © Copyright 2015 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2013 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

 

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.