How to Avoid A Climate Backlash
Time|August 26, 2024
The energy transition hangs in the balance, as green policies fuel right-wing politics
Justin Worland
How to Avoid A Climate Backlash

SIX MONTHS AFTER BEING OUSTED AS THE SUPERVISOR OF Green Charter Township in rural western Michigan, Jim Chapman is sitting at the dining table in his son's house, a haven from the dirty looks and death threats that continue even now. A self-described conservative Republican who was a police officer before entering local politics, Chapman says his downfall was negotiating to bring a $2.4 billion electric-vehicle-battery plant owned by a Chinese company to town, what he calls a once-in-a-generation opportunity to grow the local economy.

The backlash was swift and withering. A Congressman launched an ad campaign ahead of his recall election, criticizing "local officials" for welcoming Gotion, the company building the plant. A recent caller left a voicemail threatening to target Chapman and "exercise my Second Amendment rights." Another said he would call up his local militia. "This Neanderthal response has been the core of the problem," says Chapman.

For a growing number of activists, he was just the start. Eight miles away, in a farm dotted with more than a dozen NO GOTION placards styled like Trump campaign signs, Lori Brock, the farm's owner, is coordinating anti-Gotion activists. Teri and Ormand Hook, local Michiganders, are working to spread their message across the state and country, while other GOP groups have taken the fight statewide with radio ads and slick campaign mailers blasted in local races. The impact could extend from Green Charter Township all the way to the White House. "We win Michigan for Trump, then most likely Trump is President of the United States," says Pete Hoekstra, the chair of the Michigan Republican Party, who is collaborating with local anti-Gotion campaigns. "A big reason for that would be what's happening with China, and what's happening with EVs."

Bu hikaye Time dergisinin August 26, 2024 sayısından alınmıştır.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

Bu hikaye Time dergisinin August 26, 2024 sayısından alınmıştır.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

TIME DERGISINDEN DAHA FAZLA HIKAYETümünü görüntüle
How Trump Won
Time

How Trump Won

THE FORMER PRESIDENT'S RE-ELECTION IS THE NEXT STEP IN A POLITICAL CAREER UNLIKE ANY OTHER IN AMERICAN HISTORY

time-read
10+ dak  |
November 25, 2024
Zak Brown The McLaren Racing CEO on Formula One in the U.S., his team's chase for a championship, and the future propulsion of the automobile
Time

Zak Brown The McLaren Racing CEO on Formula One in the U.S., his team's chase for a championship, and the future propulsion of the automobile

The McLaren F1 team is in the running for its first Formula One constructors' championship since 1998. What's that like? I'm kind of living on the edge of my seat. That's why sport is always going to be one of the most engaging forms of entertainment for people around the world.

time-read
2 dak  |
November 25, 2024
Say Nothing speaks volumes
Time

Say Nothing speaks volumes

IN 1972, AT THE BLOODY HEIGHT OF the Troubles, home invaders abducted a widowed mother of 10 named Jean McConville from her Belfast apartment. Her children never saw her alive again.

time-read
3 dak  |
November 25, 2024
Portrait of the artist in his ninth decade
Time

Portrait of the artist in his ninth decade

AS A CURATOR AT THE PHILADELPHIA MUSEUM OF ART, Eleanor Nairne is very particular about how an artwork should be placed. \"I always say that you have to ask the work if it's sat comfortably,\" she says.

time-read
5 dak  |
November 25, 2024
No rest for the songs of Wicked
Time

No rest for the songs of Wicked

THE WICKED WITCH OF THE WEST HAS BEEN A FIXTURE in American culture for nearly 125 years. After coming to life in 1900 with L. Frank Baum's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, she rose to prominence onscreen in 1939, portrayed by Margaret Hamilton as a sinister old lady intent on ruining an innocent girl's wish to go home.

time-read
5 dak  |
November 25, 2024
SENTIMENTAL VALUE
Time

SENTIMENTAL VALUE

With Here, Robert Zemeckis stays true to his unlikely blend of new technologies and old-fashioned storytelling

time-read
6 dak  |
November 25, 2024
TIME 100 CLIMATE
Time

TIME 100 CLIMATE

These are the 100 most influential leaders driving business climate action

time-read
10 dak  |
November 25, 2024
BABY TALK
Time

BABY TALK

UNSURE ABOUT HAVING KIDS? THERAPIST MERLE BOMBARDIERI CAN HELP YOU FIGURE IT OUT

time-read
10 dak  |
November 25, 2024
The many horrors of the Pelicot rape trial
Time

The many horrors of the Pelicot rape trial

THE TRIAL OF DOMINIQUE PELICOT, THE MAN IN THE South of France who pleaded guilty in September to charges of secretly drugging his wife of 50 years, Gisele, and, over the course of about a decade, filming dozens of men as they had sex with her while she was sedated, would have been disturbing enough just as the story of an epically vile husband.

time-read
5 dak  |
November 25, 2024
Health Matters
Time

Health Matters

COVID-19 MAY NOT BE A PUBLIChealth emergency anymore, but you still need your yearly shot. In fact, it seems to peak about twice a year: once during the traditional respiratory-disease season in the fall and winter, and once during summer.

time-read
3 dak  |
November 25, 2024