Talking to Mehdi Hasan on Upfront, renowned journalist and author Naomi Klein:
• Criticises Hillary Clinton on climate change, saying: “I don’t trust her on climate at all”
• Says the “entanglement of the Clinton Foundation with so many corporations and so many governments… makes her vulnerable”
• Praises Bernie Sanders: “I actually think he is a significantly better candidate than Hillary Clinton”
• Says Justin Trudeau’s government has “done some important things” on climate change, but “what they’re doing… is not nearly enough”
• Says, “There are things that are really important in the Paris deal,” referring to the Climate Change Conference of December, 2015, in Paris, but criticises the United Nations “because they just said, ‘Ok, everybody go home and make your best effort’”
In an exclusive interview with Al Jazeera English’s current affairs show, UpFront, renowned journalist and author Naomi Klein doubts Hillary Clinton on climate change.
“I don’t trust her on climate at all,” she told UpFront host Mehdi Hasan. “I don’t trust her because as Secretary of State, when she had a huge megaphone to make this an issue, to show that she understands the connections between human security and climate, she didn’t use the megaphone.”
Klein also criticized Clinton’s ties to big money donors. “The logic of her candidacy was because she had so much money […] which is why she is unbeatable,” she said. “But the irony is, it’s where that money comes from and the entanglement of the Clinton Foundation with so many corporations and so many governments, that is what makes her vulnerable.”
Klein did, however, voice her support for presidential hopeful Bernie Sanders.
“I think that Bernie Sanders could win in a general election. I actually think he is a significantly better candidate than Hillary Clinton,” she said. “The power of the socialism smear I think has really lost a lot of its punch,” she added.
Under Obama’s second term, the US and China signed an agreement to curb carbon emissions, which was seen as a major step toward a deal at the Climate Change Conference in December, 2015, Paris.
“There are things that are really important in the Paris deal,” she said, but the “UN didn’t want to tell governments what they were going to do. They just said, ‘Okay, everybody go home and make your best effort, and fingers crossed when we add it all up it’ll match up with our stated goal.’”
During the interview, Klein, who hails from Canada, was also asked if she had faith that the newly elected Canadian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, would deliver on his climate change promises.
“I think they’ve done some important things, but what they’re doing on climate is not nearly enough,” she said. “I think Trudeau wants us to love him… And because of that, that gives us more to work with.”
On a personal note, Klein responded to naysayers who criticise her for leaving a huge carbon footprint as she travels the world lecturing on climate change.
“My huge sin is flying,” she conceded. “You know, I wrote in a book that I finally lost my frequent flyer status and cut my flying by 10%, but even though I try to do as much as I can by Skype, I’ve been flying way too much.”
Watch and embed a two-minute excerpt from this interview at https://www.youtube.com/
The full interview airs on Al Jazeera English on Friday, 18 March 2016 at 19:30 GMT, after which it will be available at www.aljazeera.com/upfront and on YouTube.
For more information, visit www.aljazeera.com/upfront or follow @AJUpFront on Twitter.
