“As president I will continue to do everything I can to stop other nations from making our oceans into their landfills. That’s why I’m pleased – very pleased, I must say – to put my signature on this important legislation,” proclaimed Trump as he applied his signature to the "Save Our Seas Act" on Thursday, approving an initiative to remove 8 million tons of debris from the world's oceans.
According to the Daily Caller,
"Sponsored by Alaska Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan, the bill aims to promote better domestic and international efforts at cleaning up garbage that is littered throughout the oceans. The new law will extend the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Marine Debris Program for another five years, and promote cohesion among different federal agencies on how to reduce marine debris."
This bill has received support from both the Democratic and Republican parties, being passed unanimously by both the House and Senate. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island shook hands with Trump during the bill's signing, "See, we can shake hands," Trump quipped.
Trump has accused previous administrations of being complacent, doing "absolutely nothing" to address the fact that foreign governments are dumping their waste into waters that then discharge their toxic payload on American shores, all while America is scapegoated as the world's chief polluter.
“Every year, over 8 million tons of garbage is dumped into our beautiful oceans by many countries of the world. That includes China, that includes Japan, that includes many, many countries,” Trump said. “This waste, trash and debris harms not only marine life, but also fisherman, coastal economies along America’s vast stretches. The bad news is it floats toward us.”
Environmentalism has taken a highly decreased role to the Democratic Party line in recent years, in favor of grievance identity politics and illegal-immigration lobbying. The GOP moving in to not only pursue culturally/nationally sustainable policies (regarding free speech and defending borders) as well as environmentally sustainable policies is a major paradigm shift which may have profound socio-political impacts.