"Whether the process proves to be Kyoto or something else, let's acknowledge the urgency of global warming"
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Mulroney’s line does a very statesmanlike bit of jiu-jitsu: it separates the policy vehicle from the moral and scientific emergency. “Whether the process proves to be Kyoto or something else” is diplomatic hedge language, a pre-emptive concession to the inevitable fights over treaties, enforcement, and national sovereignty. But it’s also a trapdoor. By conceding the mechanism is negotiable, he tries to make the premise non-negotiable: “let’s acknowledge the urgency of global warming.”
That phrasing matters. He doesn’t demand immediate agreement on targets, timelines, or penalties; he asks for acknowledgement. It’s the smallest political unit of consensus, a baseline admission that allows leaders to move without appearing to surrender. In the late-20th-century climate debate, that was a canny move: opposition often wasn’t framed as “warming isn’t real,” but as “this agreement is unfair,” “this will hurt jobs,” or “our country shouldn’t go first.” Mulroney anticipates that pattern and attempts to remove its cover.
The subtext is also about legacy and credibility. Mulroney came of age politically when acid rain and ozone depletion proved that environmental problems could become mainstream, solvable, and economically survivable. Invoking “Kyoto” signals he understands climate as the next tier: bigger, messier, globally entangled. He’s effectively saying: argue the architecture all you want, but stop using procedural squabbles as a substitute for responsibility.
That phrasing matters. He doesn’t demand immediate agreement on targets, timelines, or penalties; he asks for acknowledgement. It’s the smallest political unit of consensus, a baseline admission that allows leaders to move without appearing to surrender. In the late-20th-century climate debate, that was a canny move: opposition often wasn’t framed as “warming isn’t real,” but as “this agreement is unfair,” “this will hurt jobs,” or “our country shouldn’t go first.” Mulroney anticipates that pattern and attempts to remove its cover.
The subtext is also about legacy and credibility. Mulroney came of age politically when acid rain and ozone depletion proved that environmental problems could become mainstream, solvable, and economically survivable. Invoking “Kyoto” signals he understands climate as the next tier: bigger, messier, globally entangled. He’s effectively saying: argue the architecture all you want, but stop using procedural squabbles as a substitute for responsibility.
Quote Details
| Topic | Nature |
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