Does it matter if other countries will fill the void? US politicians didn't take climate change seriously until literally right after China spewed out one smog particle more than the US. So what leadership was lost that the US can only give? Did Obama do any better than Trump when it comes to the environment when he spent his entire Presidency sabotaging any international climate agreement just to avoid how anything greed upon by the world would fall apart when the US Congress didn't ratify it just as what happened when Bush was blamed after the world signed a pact at Kyoto? The Europeans who were big noise makers on the environment when Bush was in office but suddenly silent on Obama doing nothing but working against green technology slapping tariffs because US green companies couldn't compete. Why Russia and Iran? How about India or the EU? Iran is certainly not taking the leadership on the environment anytime soon. Trying to trick the US into an undeserved leadership that has always been in name only?
I was reading an article I believe was in the NY Times praising China's actions on reducing carbon emissions. But as always they needed to insult China to balance it out. Only the West can in their hearts do things at 100% good and selfless reasons. In this case even though China was beating the US in meeting its duties over the Paris Climate accord, the author of the article charged that China wasn't doing it for the world. The Chinese were only doing it for themselves to get themselves out from environmental disaster and not because it was in their heart. Again, does it matter? Was it in their dearest hearts that they only cared about the environment when they weren't the number one villains of the environment anymore? Was it in Obama's heart to save the environment when he did nothing for it to avoid taking a hit on his legacy knowing Congress for domestic political reasons would never eventually pass an international climate agreement. Is that leadership?
