John Kerry justifies private jet travel to climate change conferences with incredible defense: 'They buy offsets'



John Kerry, special climate envoy to President Joe Biden, last week tried to justify climate change advocates using private jets.

Yahoo! News senior climate editor Ben Adler confronted Kerry about the fact that many climate change advocates who participate in Davos conferences about the alleged dangers of climate change often fly to those conferences in private jets.

Kerry responded by immediately defending his colleagues.

"I’ve talked to them about it," Kerry said. "They offset — they buy offsets, they offset, and they are working harder than most people I know to be able to try to effect this transition."

To "offset" is to buy so-called "carbon credits," which allegedly make up for the carbon one has emitted. By using the line of defense, Kerry justified the clearly hypocritical use of gas-guzzling private jets, which those flying to Davos climate change conferences claim actively harm the environment.

John Kerry: The Yahoo News Interview youtu.be

Adler also asked Kerry about the recent decision to begin flying commercial.

Fox News reported last month that the Kerry family "quietly sold their private jet to a New York-based hedge fund following intense criticism of the plane's carbon footprint in light of Kerry's work fighting global warming. The Kerry family's private jet, a Gulfstream GIV-SP, is no longer owned by his family's charter firm Flying Squirrel LLC.," the outlet reported, citing FAA documents.

Kerry, however, rejected the claim that he only recently began to fly commercial.

"No, I didn't fly private while I was in this job. It's just a misnomer," he said.

Interestingly, Kerry qualified the response by noting that he does not fly private in his official capacity. That does not mean, however, that Kerry flies commercial for personal travel.

Several years ago, Kerry used the same line to justify his use of a private jet to advocate for climate change.

"If you offset your carbon — it's the only choice for somebody like me who is traveling the world to win this battle," Kerry said. "I can't sail across the ocean. I have to fly to meet with people and get things done."

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John Kerry called flying a private jet 'the only choice for somebody like me' after jet-setting to Iceland to accept a climate award in 2019



President Joe Biden's new climate czar, John Kerry, is under fire for an out-of-touch comment he made in 2019 after an Icelandic reporter criticized him for flying a private jet to the country to accept an environmental award.

What happened?

The former secretary of state was in the country to accept the Arctic Circle Prize for "having been a consistent voice pressuring the American authorities to commit to tackle environmental matters," Icelandic news outlet RUV reported. But during the assembly, Kerry was also confronted over his decision to fly charter to attend the gathering.

While speaking with Kerry, Icelandic reporter Jóhann Bjarni Kolbeinsson pressed the climate leader over his choice of transportation, asking: "I understand that you came here with a private jet. Is that an environmental way to travel?"

At the time, Kerry defended the hypocritical action, essentially arguing it's only option for jet-setting big shots like himself who are trying to save the world.

"If you offset your carbon — it's the only choice for somebody like me who is traveling the world to win this battle," Kerry said, according to the interview unearthed by Fox News. The outlet noted that the incident had not previously been reported by American media.

.@JohnKerry, who is now @JoeBiden's climate envoy, defended the use of a private jet to collect a climate prize."… https://t.co/qTtHcpZzWT
— Washington Examiner (@Washington Examiner)1612373043.0

"I negotiated the Paris Accords for the United States," he added, in reference to the international carbon emissions reduction agreement the U.S. entered during the Obama administration.

"I've been involved in this fight for years," he continued. "I negotiated with [Chinese] President Xi to bring President Xi to the table so we could get Paris. And, I believe, the time it takes me to get somewhere ... I can't sail across the ocean. I have to fly to meet with people and get things done."

"But, what I'm doing, almost full time, is working to win the battle on climate change, and in the end, if I offset and contribute my life to do this, I'm not going to be put on the defensive," he said.

Why does it matter?

The unearthed video comes at a bad time for the new White House climate envoy, who last week was scrutinized for the fact that his family still owns a gas-guzzling private jet even as he officially preaches climate consciousness for the Biden administration.

It is estimated that private jets emit up to 40 times as much carbon per passenger as do commercial flights.

Kerry also ran into controversy during a news conference on Jan. 27 while attempting to address concerns over the Biden administration's job-killing environmental agenda. He told reporters that oil and gas workers in fear of losing their jobs due to new climate change initiatives will simply have to make "better choices" for their next careers.

"What President Biden wants to do is make sure those folks have better choices, that they have alternatives," Kerry said. "They could be the people who go to work to make the solar panels."

Report: John Kerry’s family still owns a gas-guzzling private jet even as he preaches climate consciousness for Biden



Former Secretary of State John Kerry, who now serves as a President Biden's special envoy on climate, may have some answering to do following revelations that his family still owns a gas-guzzling private jet.

What are the details?

While Kerry preaches climate consciousness and combatting fossil fuels for the new administration, he apparently doesn't speak so forcefully to his family and may even be benefiting from the acquisition himself.

According to Fox News, a Federal Aviation Administration registry shows "a Gulfstream Aerospace jet owned by Flying Squirrel LLC, the name previously reported for Teresa Heinz-Kerry's private charter jet company." The news outlet noted that "the company's listed address matches that of the Heinz Family Foundation."

FFA records show the jet's registration certificate was issued in July 2005 and is not set to expire until the end of October 2023.

Private jets are estimated to emit approximately 40 times as much carbon per passenger as commercial flights.

Fox News notes while it is not fully known how much Kerry has benefited from his wife's business, as of late 2013, the then-secretary of state's executive branch personnel financial disclosure showed he owned "over $1,000,001" in assets for "Flying Squirrel LLC" through his wife.

The New York Post reported that in 2004, during his run for president, Kerry's campaign made 60 payments totaling $273,171 to his wife's company.

The White House has reportedly not responded to Fox News' request for comment on the matter.

What else?

It's not the only controversy that Kerry has run into of late. The climate czar also put his foot in his mouth while addressing concerns over the Biden administration's potentially job-killing environmental agenda during a press conference on Wednesday.

Attempting to reassure oil and gas workers who fear losing their jobs under Biden's climate change initiatives, Kerry said displaced workers would be redirected to better options — like making solar panels.

"What President Biden wants to do is make sure those folks have better choices, that they have alternatives," Kerry said, adding, "They could be the people who go to work to make the solar panels."

Kerry has previously come under fire for hypocritically enjoying a luxurious lifestyle, including ownership of a 76-foot yacht, while speaking out against human-driven climate change.