The Democratic National Committee is paying to fly a private plane in circles around Milwaukee during the Republican debate on Wednesday, a stunt that will in mere hours emit nearly four times as much carbon as the average American produces in a day, a Washington Free Beacon analysis found.
The DNC's plane will drag a banner that reads, "GOP 2024: A Race for the Extreme MAGA Base," according to Politico. Single-engine planes such as the Cessna 172 are typically used for banner towing—the Cessna 172 emits roughly 165 pounds of carbon an hour, according to one estimate. Assuming the DNC plane circles Milwaukee for the two-hour debate, it would emit roughly 331 pounds of carbon. The average American produces roughly 88 pounds of carbon per day, meaning it would take the average Joe nearly four days to match the DNC plane's carbon pollution.
The stunt stands in stark contrast to the DNC's purported efforts to combat the climate crisis and pursue environmental justice. The DNC's climate policy platform says climate change is a "global emergency" that has killed "thousands of Americans." It also argues that "air pollution" disproportionately impacts "communities of color"—nearly 70 percent of Wisconsin's black population lives in Milwaukee County, and the city itself is majority-minority.
"We have no time to waste in taking action to protect Americans' lives and futures," the DNC's climate platform says. "Although the youngest generations of Americans have contributed the least to this calamity, they stand to lose the most as they suffer from the impacts of runaway carbon pollution for decades to come. Democrats believe there is a better way."
For Daniel Turner, the founder and executive director of energy advocacy group Power the Future, the DNC's "childish antics" show "the hypocrisy of the green agenda."
"They are emitting emissions over minority neighborhoods, which is something they would oppose if anyone else did it, but they're allowed to do it because they're playing politics," Turner told the Free Beacon. "It's just pure stupidity and childish behavior, and it's totally unsurprising."
The DNC did not answer questions on the plane and its specifications. In addition to the plane, the DNC also booked a "mobile billboard" that will circle the streets of Milwaukee near the debate venue. The Biden administration has proposed measures to limit tailpipe emissions, and President Joe Biden during an Aug. 15 speech in Milwaukee touted his efforts to combat "the existential threat of climate change."
Eight Republicans will take the stage in Milwaukee on Wednesday night, with participants including Florida governor Ron DeSantis, anti-woke activist Vivek Ramaswamy, South Carolina senator Tim Scott, and former United Nations ambassador Nikki Haley. Former president Donald Trump is not participating.