Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni Grand Canyon National Monument
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Biden has created another large national monument, this one protecting most of the open land between the Grand Canyon and Flagstaff (you’ve probably been on that road if you’ve visited the park). The reason is to protect the land from uranium mining and the key players behind it are the tribes, which have more influence over the public lands and environmental protection in this administration than they ever have in American history. Add to this Biden attempting to create a coalition to help him be reelected, including in places such as Arizona. Ranchers and uranium miners might hate this, but the masses in Phoenix very much do not.
The White House has presented Mr. Biden’s sales pitch for legislation aimed at cutting planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions, the Inflation Reduction Act, as a job-growth machine to appeal to the middle class. But the administration knows that those who care about protecting the environment and preserving lands stripped from tribal nations are crucial voters, particularly in the battleground state of Arizona.
The balancing act was reflected during Mr. Biden’s visit to the mountainous range of Red Butte near the Grand Canyon, where he spoke of job creation while also acknowledging environmental activists and tribal leaders.
Indigenous people, Mr. Biden said, “fought for decades to be able to return to these lands to protect these lands from mining and development to clear them of contamination to preserve their shared legacy.”
The White House hopes Mr. Biden’s message is received by not just Native Americans but also young and climate-conscious voters, many of whom have yet to be fired up by his economy-first message.
About 71 percent of Americans say they have heard “little” or “nothing at all” about the Inflation Reduction Act one year after it was signed, according to a Washington Post-University of Maryland poll. And most Americans — 57 percent — disapprove of Mr. Biden’s handling of climate change, according to the poll. Recent polls also show that voter sentiment on the economy continues to drive the president’s negative approval ratings.
The one thing this administration is not good at is propaganda. That’s pretty much a fact. The new signs on federal road construction, for example, talk about the funding coming from the bipartisan package in Congress, whereas under Obama, it was clear that it was Obama. Regardless of how effective those signs were, it goes to show where Biden’s head remains about these issues. So we’ll see if this makes much difference, but in a crucial swing state like Arizona, it really might matter locally.