O’Rourke signals support for ‘concept’ of Green New Deal

Former Rep. Beto O’Rourke (Texas) signaled his support for the “concept” of the Green New Deal, making him the latest high-profile Democrat to get behind the progressive idea.

Chris Evans, spokesman for O’Rourke’s unsuccessful Senate campaign, told HuffPost that O’Rourke is “supportive of the concept” of a Green New Deal.

“[He] is looking forward to engaging more on the issue as it continues to develop,” Evans said in an email to HuffPost. “As he mentioned while traveling to every county across Texas during his senate campaign, he’s proud to come from a renewable energy producing state that is number one in wind power production, number one in wind power jobs and number one in solar energy potential.”

The Green New Deal was popularized by progressive Democrats like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (N.Y.) in recent months and has been supported by 2020 presidential candidates, with Elizabeth Warren telling Axios that she supports the idea.

O’Rourke is seen as a possible 2020 presidential candidate who could do well in a challenge to President Trump.

The former El Paso congressman lost a close Texas Senate race to incumbent Ted Cruz (R), creating national buzz in the process.

The Green New Deal is seen as a litmus test for Democrat candidates hoping to win the progressive base.

The Green New Deal is viewed as a plan to confront the impact of global climate change, calling for massive investments in renewable energy jobs and a shift in energy dependence away from fossil fuels.

The name harkens back to Franklin D. Roosevelt’s “New Deal,” hoping to emulate a government-driven stimulus of jobs in the clean-energy industry.