On Tuesday's New Day show, CNN gave a forum to left-wing actress Jane Fonda to push her alarmist views as she hysterically listed several "crises" that she claimed humans are facing worse than anything they've faced before.
Co-host Brianna Keilar began the segment by cuing her up to lobby President Joe Biden to stop the construction of a pipeline in Minnesota that President Donald Trump approved as he was leaving office. Fonda insisted that construction of the pipeline must be stopped, and gave dire predictions:
We are barreling toward a true catastrophe, an existential catastrophe which is the climate crisis. Climate scientists are universally telling us we have to cut our emissions in half, and we can have absolutely no new development of fossil fuels -- no new mining, no new fracking, no new drilling -- if we're going to achieve this. We have to keep warming at 1.5 degrees Celsius. No higher than that. We can't even burn what we already develop much less new. So this pipeline is threatening what science is saying. It's threatening the climate crisis. This is going to affect everybody, not just the tribal nations whose sovereign rights are being broken here in Minnesota, but the whole world. We cannot afford this.
After Keilar read a statement from Enbridge arguing that the company has benefited local populations financially with their work, Fonda was dismissive of the energy company's good work:
This is what they do all over the world. The oil companies, in order to -- they do their drilling and fracking in areas where people are economically depressed. They -- and then they create child care centers and recreational parks, and they build schools and they try to buy them off. But we, again, we are confronting an existential crisis. It's not just the tribal nations here. It is the globe. We have to stop all new oil development. We cannot allow this to happen. It's not just for us living today. It's for our grandchildren and our children.
The CNN host soon followed up by bringing up the new voting laws being pushed by Republicans:
There's also obviously issues when it comes to voting rights. You're seeing states across the country where Republican legislatures are putting in place laws that will limit the right of people of color to vote or limit the ability of people of color to vote. Do you think the Biden administration is taking this seriously enough?
Keilar soon cued up her guest to fearmonger that there are several crises all at once:
BRIANNA KEILAR: In an interview with CNN last night, former president Barack Obama said that democracy was on the brink of crisis. You have certainly experienced, you know, moments of crisis, and been a participant and an advocate throughout moments of crisis in American history. How do you see this moment in time for the country?
JANE FONDA: I think we're facing multiple crises. This is a confluence of crises, unlike anything that humanity has been -- has seen. And the climate crisis, like rushing nesting dolls -- Russian nesting dolls -- there's the climate crisis, and then inside of that, the health crisis, democracy crisis, so many other crises. And the climate crisis exacerbates all the other ones. So we have to deal with all of them at once by becoming organized and uniting together -- black, brown, white, young, old -- across all diversities, we have to come together and demand that the government do the right thing. If there's enough of us doing that, we'll win.
This episode of CNN's New Day was sponsored in part by Eargo. Click on the link to let them know what you think.
Transcript follows. Click "expand" to read more.
CNN
New Day
June 8, 2021
8:39 a.m. Eastern
BRIANNA KEILAR: Legendary actress Jane Fonda is among the climate activists with a message for the Biden administration in a bid to halt construction of a $4 billion pipeline project. Some of the protesters who marched onto the site on this construction site in Minnesota on Monday chained themselves to heavy machinery. They say the pipeline threatens water resources and it risks polluting tribal lands. Fonda is calling on President Biden to suspend the permit of the Canadian company behind the project.
JANE FONDA (speaking at rally): This is a man who can be persuaded and pushed and made to do what we want if we continue to raise a ruckus. We have to raise a ruckus and make it as difficult as possible for Enbridge Line 3 at every single river crossing, and we're going to do it, right? All right.
KEILAR: And joining us now is actress, author, producer and longtime activist Jane Fonda. Jane, thank you so much for being with us this morning. You've been incredibly outspoken on this issue of this pipeline project. It's a project that former President Trump had approved during his last days in office, but still President Biden, the Biden administration, has remained silent on this issue, despite what is his clear position on climate. You know, how do you respond to that? What do you think the Biden administration needs to do?
FONDA: Well, what they need to do is ask the Army Corps of Engineers to halt construction and to re-examine the permit. It was rushed through. There wasn't proper impact -- environmental impact study done. And there's a lot of reasons why Line 3 from an Enbridge Canadian oil company is bad. It's bringing very destructive tar sands under 200 bodies of pristine water. But look at the big picture. We are barreling toward a true catastrophe, an existential catastrophe which is the climate crisis. Climate scientists are universally telling us we have to cut our emissions in half, and we can have absolutely no new development of fossil fuels -- no new mining, no new fracking, no new drilling -- if we're going to achieve this. We have to keep warming at 1.5 degrees Celsius. No higher than that. We can't even burn what we already develop much less new.
So this pipeline is threatening what science is saying. It's threatening the climate crisis. This is going to affect everybody, not just the tribal nations whose sovereign rights are being broken here in Minnesota, but the whole world. We cannot afford this. Biden -- President Biden has done many, many good things -- stopping Keystone XL, stopping the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge drilling. He's done a lot, and we're really grateful. But the crisis is too severe to do a few good things here and then not do anything where bad stuff is happening. We need him to stop this and stop all of the pipelines that Trump okayed as a lame-duck President. None of them are following the proper permit guidelines. So the way to do that historically is to raise a ruckus, as I said, to the thousands of people that have gathered here, and we just have to create pressure, and we have to maybe one way to put it -- there's a -- it's actually a verb now. We have to Standing Rock them so that they're forced to stop. And that's what we're going to do. There are 200 bodies of water they have to go under. It's a lot more complicated than it was at Standing Rock.
KEILAR: And you are standing in solidarity with indigenous activists in this. I do want to mention that the company behind the project, which is Enbridge, said in a statement yesterday, quote, "The destruction done today by protesters is disheartening. We respect everyone's right to peacefully and lawfully protest, but trespass, intimidation, and destruction are unacceptable. The project is already providing significant economic benefits for counties, small businesses, Native American communities and union members, including creating 5,200 family-sustaining construction jobs and millions of dollars in local spending and tax revenues. What is your reaction to that statement from Enbridge?
FONDA: This is what they do all over the world. The oil companies, in order to -- they do their drilling and fracking in areas where people are economically depressed. They -- and then they create child care centers and recreational parks, and they build schools and they try to buy them off. But we, again, we are confronting an existential crisis. It's not just the tribal nations here. It is the globe. We have to stop all new oil development. We cannot allow this to happen. It's not just for us living today. It's for our grandchildren and our children.
KEILAR: And so you are calling on the Biden administration to do more when it comes to pipelines. But just generally, I wonder how you are currently assessing the Biden presidency. Clearly you're happy with some things. But how do you think that he is doing, and is it enough to make progressives like yourself feel that he is delivering for what you voted him in for?
FONDA: Well, it's nice to be hopeful again, and it's much better to push a moderate than to fight a fascist, right? We're very, very grateful for what he's been doing. He's done a lot of very good things, but not enough -- not bold enough, and not fast enough. We're up against time. The scientists say we have less than nine years to cut our emissions in half. Line 3 is going in the absolute opposite direction. And the news every day is telling us, emissions are going up, not down. So we have to put our bodies on the line and do whatever we can to get our administration to call a halt to these permits.
KEILAR: There's also obviously issues when it comes to voting rights. You're seeing states across the country where Republican legislatures are putting in place laws that will limit the right of people of color to vote or limit the ability of people of color to vote. Do you think the Biden administration is taking this seriously enough?
FONDA: I think they are taking it seriously. I think they have to do more. And we, the people, have to stand alongside and push and push and make noise. Historically, nothing important has ever been accomplished without people getting together, organizing and making a lot of noise. That's what we have to do. That's our job. And there's so much at stake like the future.
KEILAR: In an interview with CNN last night, former president Barack Obama said that democracy was on the brink of crisis. You have certainly experienced, you know, moments of crisis, and been a participant and an advocate throughout moments of crisis in American history. How do you see this moment in time for the country?
FONDA: I think we're facing multiple crises. This is a confluence of crises, unlike anything that humanity has been -- has seen. And the climate crisis, like rushing nesting dolls -- Russian nesting dolls -- there's the climate crisis, and then inside of that, the health crisis, democracy crisis, so many other crises. And the climate crisis exacerbates all the other ones. So we have to deal with all of them at once by becoming organized and uniting together -- black, brown, white, young, old -- across all diversities, we have to come together and demand that the government do the right thing. If there's enough of us doing that, we'll win.
KEILAR: Jane, it is wonderful that you can join us this morning. We certainly appreciate it -- Jane Fonda.
