AOC, Sen. Markey reintroduce 'Green New Deal' legislation

New York Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Massachusetts Democratic Sen. Ed Markey on Thursday reintroduced the Green New Deal, a progressive climate resolution.

Ocasio-Cortez contended that sweeping climate action is feasible in Congress, citing provisions within the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act that addressed such matters, The Hill reported.

"First, we were called unrealistic. Then, when it was when it came time for the Bipartisan Infrastructure law and inflation Reduction Act, we started to fight... We said we are not going to take crumbs, and we’re not going to settle for that — we need bold big climate action and we need it now," she declared. "And that fight resulted in the largest piece of climate legislation in American history."

AOC originally put forward the plan in 2019, shortly after taking office, though the legislation failed to clear the divided Congress. With Republicans in control of the lower chamber, it is unlikely to gain traction in the legislature on its second go around. It further comes amid a standoff between House Republicans and President Joe Biden over raising the debt limit.

Also on Thursday, Markey and Democratic California Rep. Ro Khanna introduced a "Green New Deal for Health" to restore a program of hospital construction grants and to provide funds for hospitals to invest in climate initiatives.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on Twitter.