Trump Announces U.S. Withdrawal From Paris Climate Accord

President Trump has announced that the U.S. will be withdrawing from the Paris accord — the historic global agreement reached by 195 countries in 2015 to set targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and limiting the rise in average global temperatures.

During a news conference Thursday in the Rose Garden at the White House, Trump said the withdrawal is aimed at keeping his campaign promise to put American workers first. But he added that the U.S. would begin negotiations to possibly re-enter the Paris accord or a similar deal that, he said, would result in a better deal for American workers.

"The agreement is a massive redistribution of United States' wealth to other countries," Trump said. "It's to give their country an economic edge over the United States. That's not going to happen while I'm president. I'm sorry."

He later added: "Our withdrawal from the agreement represents a reassertion of American workers' sovereignty." 

Barack Obama had used his authority as president to join the Paris accord without a vote in Congress. That means Trump can remove the U.S. from the accord without a vote. But it will take awhile: Under the terms of the agreement, he wouldn't actually be able to withdraw until November 2020.

Leaving the underlying treaty — the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change — would be faster and could be completed within a year. But that treaty was ratified by the U.S. Senate. Presidents have unilaterally exited Senate-ratified treaties before, but it's rare and controversial. - Read More, NPR

Trump Announces U.S. Withdrawal From Paris Climate Accord