There will be many things US President Donald Trump will be remembered for, but having a positive impact on the environment will not be one of them.
That said, the Leader of the Free World (who also famously vowed to exit the Paris Agreement on climate change) is doing his best to position himself as an eco-warrior.
Trump announced his endorsement of a 10-year moratorium on oil and gas drilling off the coast of Florida this week, declaring himself “a great environmentalist” and congratulating his administration for, “our incredible record of natural conservation and environmental protection”.
But eagle-eyed readers will note this is a flip flop on his administration’s 2018 position, which had then proposed to lift the moratorium and let the drillers do their thing.
Florida was then staunchly Republican, but now the numbers are more evenly split.
So, is this a change of heart for the President (who has also repeatedly called climate change a hoax and opened the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas companies) – or a quick way to gain votes?
Only time will tell!
