Corporations support the Paris accord. Progressives, take note.

Most corporations are more amoral than immoral. They may not love government regulation, but they crave regulatory certainty. They can’t survive without long-term planning and investment. In turn, they are not served by climate science denial and delusional talking points. They need a clear-eyed view of what the future holds, and a regulatory regime that allows them to still earn a profit.

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That doesn’t make them natural progressive allies. But it does make them reality-based. And the broadest possible anti-Trump coalition can be built on a commitment to reality-based governing.

Nurturing such close cooperation between progressive activists and corporate titans is not so simple. Their political agendas diverge in a host of other areas including taxes, regulation, labor rights and even the particulars of climate protections. If progressives are too dependent on corporations, then corporations could dictate the Democratic Party agenda and thwart the ambitions of the party’s populist wing.

However, those committed to a single-payer health-care system, a $15 minimum wage, a cap on bank size and stiff taxes on the top 1 percent need not shelve their agenda to form a climate coalition with Corporate America. Partners on one issue often joust over another. But populist progressives would have to shelve some of their most pointed anti-corporate rhetoric.

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