Will U.S. Stay or Go in Paris Climate Deal?

According to a report from Reuters, the Trump administration will likely decide later this month whether the U.S. will remain party to the Paris climate deal.

“The president has been meeting with his team for quite a while on this matter, and he will not be making an announcement regarding that agreement until after he returns from the G-7,” White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer explained recently, referring to the Group of Seven meeting scheduled for May 26th and 27th in Italy.

Canceling the Paris agreement was initially a key part of President Donald Trump’s 100-day plan for energy policy. The president later softened that stance, saying the U.S. could remain in the deal if the nation received better terms.

“The reason that he’s seeking the advice of his team is to get options and then he’ll pursue the best one, but I’m not going to tell you which one that he’s going to do,” explained Spicer. “The president wants to continue to meet with his team … meet with not just the economic piece, but his environmental team, and come to a decision on what’s the best interests of the United States, using the expertise that surrounds him.”

According to reporting from Sean Moran of Breitbart, the move to withdraw from the Paris agreement is supported by Senior White House adviser Steve Bannon and Environmental Protection Agency chief Scott Pruitt, while White House advisers Ivanka Trump, Jared Kushner, and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson supporting continued U.S. participation in the climate deal.

While many industries oppose the deal, some companies such as BP Plc (formerly British Petroleum) and Microsoft Corp are urging the U.S. to remain part of the agreement. Others see talks surrounding the Paris climate deal as an opportunity to strengthen the U.S. position on world energy.

Representative Kevin Cramer of North Dakota, a major oil-producing state, and eight other Republican House of Representatives members sent a letter to President Trump urging him to use the country’s “seat at the Paris table to defend and promote our commercial interest, including our manufacturing and fossil fuel sectors.” Cramer helped to advise the president on energy and climate during the 2016 presidential campaign.