Rick Perry signals the Trump administration's continued issues with the Paris climate deal
Michael B. Thomas/Getty Images
President Donald Trump - who has called climate change a "hoax" - said on the campaign trail that'd he'd cancel the deal.
But his administration has discovered that the diplomatic and political ramifications of stepping away from the 196-country accord could be too costly.
Speaking on Friday, Perry touted the environmental progress Texas achieved under his 14 years as governor, arguing that it was possible to do without "over taxation, over litigation, or over regulation."
The anger growing in his voice, he said his counterparts at the G7 summit he attended in Italy last week "lectured" him on continuing the US's leadership on renewables, but they could learn a lesson from his tenure as governor.
"My point with the rest of the world is that America will continue to lead. America will continue to find the innovative ways to make sure that our air, and our water, and the globe that we live on is taken care of, that it's in good shape for the next generation," Perry said. "That it's not just a bunch of talk. It's not just a document that a bunch of folks got together and signed. It's reality."
Every other nation released a statement doubling down on their support for the Paris agreement at the G7 meeting, but Perry neglected to add the US's support.
On Friday, he joked to the Texas crowd that he was tempted to tell "the lady from France" - French Minister of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy Segolene Royal - at the meeting that Texas was bigger than her country, but decided not to.
Earth Day Texas, which Republican Trammell S. Crow founded in 2011, is expected to draw 150,000 attendees this year. Perry offered an optimistic tone to its audience on the Trump administration's possible environmental legacy.
"I'm proud to work with a president who believes he needs people like me around him to help develop the policies to protect our people, to protect our resources, to protect our planet," he said.
- I quit McKinsey after 1.5 years. I was making over $200k but my mental health was shattered.
- Some Tesla factory workers realized they were laid off when security scanned their badges and sent them back on shuttles, sources say
- I tutor the children of some of Dubai's richest people. One of them paid me $3,000 to do his homework.
- Markets face heavy fluctuations; settle lower taking downtrend to 4th day
- Move over Bollywood, audio shows are starting to enter the coveted ‘100 Crores Club’
- 10 Powerful foods for lowering bad cholesterol
- Eat Well, live well: 10 Potassium-rich foods to maintain healthy blood pressure
- Bitcoin scam case: ED attaches assets worth over Rs 97 cr of Raj Kundra, Shilpa Shetty