Democratic Party platform drops Kyoto ratification

As the Associated Press reported on July 3, the newly-published draft of the Democratic Party platform for the November elections has dropped its Gore-era reference to embracing the Kyoto Protocol.

In 2000, the platform contained this statement: In 1997, we negotiated the historic Kyoto Protocols, an international treaty that will establish a strong, realistic, and effective framework to reduce greenhouse emissions in an environmentally strong and economically sound way.  We are working to develop a broad international effort to take action to meet this threat.  Al Gore and the Democratic Party believe we must now ratify those Protocols.

The current draft contains no reference to ratifying Kyoto.  Instead, it has these two mentions of climate change:

We will reduce mercury emissions, smog and acid rain, and will address the challenge of climate change with the seriousness of purpose this great challenge demands.  Rather than looking at American industries only as polluters, we will work with the private sector to create partnerships that make a profit and a cleaner world for us all; and,

We know that America‘s fight for a healthy environment cannot be waged within our borders alone.  Environmental hazards from around the globe reach America through the oceans and the jet streams encircling our planet.  And climate change is a major international challenge that requires global leadership from the United States, not abdication.  We must restore American leadership on this issue as well as others such as hazardous waste emissions and depleted fisheries.

The full platform can be read at http://www.democrats.org/platform/ .