Ryan Campaign Press Release - Congressman Tim Ryan Joins Calls for Presidential Debate to Tackle Climate Change

Presidential candidate invites other candidates to NE Ohio to discuss issue in front of audience of steelworkers, miners and others who would benefit from a green economy

Youngstown, OH— Today, presidential candidate Tim Ryan joined others in the Democratic primary field to call on the DNC to either add a specific debate on climate change or to end the exclusivity agreement to allow candidates to discuss their plans in front of the American people. Coming off the first debate in Miami, in which only 6% of the time allotted went to discuss what is likely the defining issue of our generation, the DNC and Chair Tom Perez need to ensure that our party and those seeking its nomination are adequately addressing climate change and putting forward plans for how America will reduce or reverse its carbon footprint.

In addition, Congressman Ryan challenged the DNC and other presidential candidates to have that debate in Northeast Ohio in front of audience members from industrial belt communities who want to know how climate change and green energy plans could affect them, and how we can use this moment to rebuild manufacturing jobs that have been lost after two generations of failed trade policies and neglect.

"Climate Change defines our lives every day, and if we fail to act, it will continue to define our lives, our children's lives, and the lives of every human moving forward. The lack of coverage of the issue during the first debates does a disservice to the severity of the stakes for everyone alive," said Rep. Tim Ryan. "It's time we answer tough questions about how we plan to reorient our economy, how we plan to build the next generation of electric cars, windmills, solar panels, and batteries here in America, how we use our skilled workforce to retrofit our buildings and prepare America for what is to come. And let's have this debate in Youngstown, in front of an audience who knows how to make these things."