Listen: Ali Velshi Say the Climate Crisis is Here

Ninety years ago, says Ali Velshi, the Dust Bowl helped launch some of the first-ever official conservation efforts in the United States. The federal government took action only after dust physically descended on the nation’s capital, obscuring the sun and turning the sky orange. Today, we face a new climate crisis.

“This summer, wildfire smoke has choked cities across the country week after week. Multiple heat waves are gripping massive swaths of the nation with no end in sight,” says Velshi. “Texas has become one of the hottest places on Earth — rivaling the Sahara Desert.” That state is relying heavily on solar and wind power to keep the air conditioning on, even as its governor argues against renewable energy sources in favor of natural gas and coal.

Phoenix, AZ, has experienced temperatures above 110 degrees for multiple days. “If the forecast plays out as expected, this will be the worst and longest heat wave in America’s history,” says the MSNBC host. Last year, the Biden administration launched the first-ever extreme heat response plan. Unlike the Dust Bowl, our climate crisis is “not an anomaly” says Velshi, “This is our new normal.”