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President Obama 's President Bush Essay

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Incumbent politicians spend their time in office voting on legislation to benefit their constituents, crafting legislation to fit party principles, building a reputation for reelection, and crafting a legacy that will ensure them a spot in history. President Obama’s choice to act unilaterally in signing the Paris Agreement solidifies his legacy by finally putting into effect an international agreement that has been a work-in-progress for two decades. The Republican-ruled Congress has been opposing what they claim to be a “war on coal” since President Obama made climate change a focus of his second term. Obama’s bypass of Congressional approval for the Paris Agreement, an agreement many see as a treaty, will strain Congressional/Executive relations for terms to come by encouraging members of Congress to be cautious of unilateral actions while encouraging the President to take advantage of them. The Paris Agreement is made up of 195 nations who plan to cut their greenhouse-gas emissions in an attempt to slow down the increase in the global temperature. President Obama’s decision to sign this agreement does not only promote his personal climate change legacy but the climate change legacy of the United States of America. Since this environmental pact is only legally binding when “at least 55 countries representing 55 percent of global emissions sign on,” a United States signature could very well be the difference between a revolutionary global climate change policy and

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