Essay by Eric Worrall
“… US activists are pushing back against this trend of “climate hushing” …”
Democrats’ ‘climate hushing’ prompts activists to turn up the volume
Nationwide actions seek to counter view that talking about climate crisis distracts from affordability messaging
Dharna Noor Sat 1 Aug 2026 22.00 AESTLast modified on Sat 1 Aug 2026 22.02 AEST
…
Research makes clear that global warming is making extreme weather events more frequent and severe. Yet the climate crisis has largely disappeared from the political agenda, with many Democrats who once described it as an existential threat now shying away from talking about it.
Now US activists are pushing back against this trend of “climate hushing”, arguing it is misguided. During the summer’s federal recess, during which lawmakers leave the nation’s capital to work directly within their home states or districts, demonstrators organized by the environmental advocacy coalition Climate Action Campaign are calling on representatives to put climate back on the political agenda.
“The long history of the climate movement proves that we move fastest when there’s real pressure from the grassroots,” said Bill McKibben, the environmental author and activist who co-founded climate non-profit 350.org, “All the evidence shows those grassroots are as worried about [the] climate crisis as they ever were.”
…
Actions began on Thursday and will take a variety of forms. In Michigan, participants will demonstrate against the Republican representative Bill Huizenga who voted for Trump’s so-called big beautiful bill, which boosted planet-heating fossil fuels.
Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/aug/01/democrats-climate-policy-hushing
…
The problem with McKibben’s claims that climate change is a vote winner is these claims are not supported by the evidence. Republican gains such as the victory of President Trump in 2024 prove climate change is not the vote winner it once was, regardless of clearly flawed surveys which suggest climate change is still a high priority issue.
Senior Democrats have realised climate messaging only works on people who already intended to vote for them, and have tried to shift the conversation to issues their target audience cares about, like fear of AI.
McKibben’s climate awareness campaign has caught Democrat strategists between a rock and a hard place. If Democrats don’t give climate issues airtime, they risk splitting their own voter base, as the dwindling but still substantial cadre of climate fanatics in their own ranks lash out at being ignored. But if Democrats abandon issues independents and moderate Republicans care about, like fear of AI, or spook moderate voters by talking up expensive green energy policies, they’ll lose anyway.
McKibben’s campaign to restore climate activism to the top of the political agenda is going to be an interesting test of how much influence McKibben and his fellow travellers still have. My guess is McKibben and friends will lose – that Democrats will judge the potential gains from focusing on bipartisan issues such cost of living and demands to protect jobs and regulate AI are greater than the risk of alienating climate fanatics in their own ranks. But I’m sure looking forward to seeing how climate activists react when they realise even their alleged political allies no longer care about their cause.
