Once upon a time, political battles were waged mostly during election campaigns or in the halls of government. In recent years, though, politicians and issue advocates increasingly refuse to recognize traditional political battlegrounds as the only venues where their fights can be waged. When faced with defeat in the political arena, the losers are increasingly turning to the courts, weaponizing the judicial system to achieve political ends.
In the early months of the current Trump administration, we’ve witnessed this spectacle on issue after issue, challenging the president’s efforts to control illegal immigration, reduce the size of government, eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs, impose tariffs, etc. – an unprecedented abuse of the court system to try to stop the administration’s political agenda.
President Trump’s actions to reverse the Biden administration’s dangerous environmental and climate policies have not been immune from the parade of lawsuits. But environmental extremists have always been bolder. For years, they have aggressively used the courts to attack not just government policies and agencies, but companies themselves over often fanciful theories of cause-and-effect.
One consistent effort has been an attempt to hold coal, oil and gas companies accountable for their alleged roles in “climate change.” Across the country and in various local, state and federal courts, lawsuits have been filed accusing energy industries of misleading the public or covering up the impacts of their actions on weather patterns.
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