Michael Bloomberg: Let's Take Climate Change Into Our Own Hands

[00:00:00] Speaker 1: WELCOME BACK, FOLKS. MY NEXT GUEST IS A BILLIONAIRE PHILANTHROPIST AND THE FORMER MAYOR OF NEW YORK CITY. HIDE YOUR 20-OIL SOTAS AND GIVE A BIG WELCOME TO MICHAEL BLOOMBERG! [00:00:30] Michael Bloomberg: NICE TO SEE YOU AGAIN. AND NICE TO SEE YOU. [00:00:33] Speaker 1: DO YOU STILL LIKE THE MR. MAYOR? DO YOU GET THAT FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE? MY KIDS DON'T QUITE CALL ME THAT. YOUR EXCELLENCY, YOUR HONOR? [00:00:41] Michael Bloomberg: I TOLD MY GRANDSON HE CAN CALL ME "SIR." [00:00:44] Speaker 1: OKAY, THAT'S GOOD. SIR MICHAEL, YOU'RE FOUNDER OF THE BLOOMBERG LP AND BLOOMBERG PHILANTHROPIST, FORMER MAYOR OF NEW YORK, TENTH RICHEST MAN IN THE WORLD, ESTIMATED WORTH $47 BILLION, BUT WHO TOOK THE HONOR, SIR, IS THIS GUY. [00:01:10] Michael Bloomberg: IF I HAD TO GUESS, THAT WAS ABOUT FIVE YEARS AFTER PUBERTY. [00:01:15] Speaker 1: IS PUBERTY DIFFERENT FOR FUTURE BILLIONAIRES, OR IS IT JUST AS ROUGH? [00:01:19] Michael Bloomberg: IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME. [00:01:23] Speaker 1: NOW, WE'LL SKIP OVER THAT, THEN. THE 2016 ELECTION, THERE WAS A LOT OF TALK, A LOT OF RUMORS, THAT YOU WERE THINKING ABOUT RUNNING. WERE YOU CONSIDER-- SERIOUSLY CONSIDERING? YEAH, SURE. YOU EVIDENTLY DID NOT SEE A PATH TO VICTORY. [00:01:39] Michael Bloomberg: WELL, MY ADVISORS TOLD ME THAT A NEW YORK BILLIONAIRE WHO'S CHANGED PARTIES A NUMBER OF TIMES COULDN'T BE ELECTED. SO, I FIRED THEM. [00:01:56] Speaker 1: DO YOU HAVE ANY REGRETS? BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE SAID THAT ABOUT TRUMP, AS YOU JUST ALLUDED TO, DO YOU HAVE ANY REGRETS THAT YOU DIDN'T RUN? NO, I NEVER LOOKED BACK. IS IT OKAY IF WE HAVE REGRETS THAT YOU DIDN'T RUN? [00:02:08] Speaker ?: NO, I DIDN'T RUN. I DIDN'T RUN. I DIDN'T RUN. I DIDN'T RUN. [00:02:12] Speaker 1: I DIDN'T RUN. I DIDN'T RUN. I DIDN'T RUN. I DIDN'T RUN. I DIDN'T RUN. I DIDN'T RUN. I DIDN'T RUN. I DIDN'T RUN. I DIDN'T RUN. I HAVE A NEW BOOK HERE THAT YOU WROTE WITH CARL POPE, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE SIERRA CLUB, AND IT IS CALLED CLIMATE OF HOPE. WHERE IS THE CLIMATE OF HOPE, AND WHAT IS IT? WHERE IS THE HOPE? [00:02:30] Michael Bloomberg: WELL, THE HOPE IS HERE. WE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE. IT'S SOMETHING WE REALLY SHOULD WORRY ABOUT. YOU MEAN CLIMATE CHANGE? CLIMATE CHANGE, AND WHETHER OR NOT IT HAPPENS, NOBODY KNOWS, BUT YOU SHOULD TAKE AN INSURANCE POLICY OUT. AND IF IT LOOKS LIKE IT MIGHT DO DAMAGE, NOW IS THE TIME TO TAKE STEPS AND TAKE A LOOK. THE OCEANS ARE WARMING AND RISING, AND YOU SEE THESE TERRIBLE STORMS THAT HAVE KILLED A LOT OF PEOPLE AND DONE ENORMOUS DAMAGE IN FLORIDA AND TEXAS AND PUERTO RICO AND THE CARIBBEAN, AND WITH WARMER OCEANS, YOU'RE GOING TO GET [00:02:59] Speaker 1: MORE OF THOSE. NOW, MANY OF THE PEOPLE WHO DENY GLOBAL WARMING SAY THAT IT'S SOME SORT OF HOAX OR A MONEYMAKING SCHEME. FROM A BUSINESSMAN'S POINT OF VIEW, WHY SHOULD A BUSINESSMAN BELIEVE IN GLOBAL WARMING? [00:03:16] Michael Bloomberg: IT DOESN'T MATTER. THERE'S A RISK AND A BUSINESS PERSON WOULD TAKE APPROPRIATE PROTECTIONS. YOU DON'T THINK YOU'RE GOING TO DIE, BUT YOU STILL BUY A LIFE INSURANCE POLICY. AND BUSINESSES HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT IF THEY GOT FLOODED OUT, HOW THEY WOULD CONTINUE THEIR BUSINESS, HOW THEIR EMPLOYEES COULD GET TO WORK OR GET HOME OR WORRY ABOUT THEIR FAMILIES AND THAT SORT OF THING. SO IT'S A VERY SERIOUS THING. AND THE SCIENCE SAYS THAT THINGS ARE GETTING WARMER AND THEY WILL CONTINUE TO GET WARMER UNLESS WE REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF GREENHOUSE GASES. WE DO NOTHING, BUT THE CITIZENS, WHETHER THEY ARE COMPANIES OR INDIVIDUALS OR LOCAL GOVERNMENTS, HAVE SAID, OKAY, WE'RE GOING TO TAKE IT IN OUR OWN HANDS AND WE'RE GOING TO CUT OUR GREENHOUSE GASES. AND AMERICA HAS ACTUALLY BEEN LEADING THE WAY. WE'VE CUT -- WE'VE CLOSED HALF OF ALL OUR COALFIED POWER PLANTS IN THE LAST FEW YEARS. DONE WITH THE SIERRA CLUB, WHICH IS AN ORGANIZATION THAT WENT OUT AND PICKETED AND CONVINCED POWER PLANTS TO CONVERT TO NATURAL GAS, WHICH IS MUCH OR RENEWABLES. AND WE ARE GOING TO MEET OUR GOALS THAT WE AGREED TO IN PARIS, EVEN WITHOUT THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT. AND WE ONLY HAVE TO HOLD THEIR GROUP. [00:04:30] Speaker 1: WHILE NO ONE -- WHILE NO ONE CAN SAY FOR CERTAIN WHAT CREATES A HURRICANE, IT'S TOO COMPLEX OF A SYSTEM, THERE IS A FAIR AMOUNT OF CONSENSUS THAT STORMS ARE INTENSIFYING BECAUSE THERE IS MORE ENERGY IN THE SYSTEM. THE OCEANS ARE WARMER, WHICH FEEDS THESE STORMS. THERE'S BEEN CRITICISM FOR A SLOW AND ADEQUATE RESPONSE TO WHAT'S HAPPENING IN PUERTO RICO. I KNOW YOU WENT DOWN TO THE VIRGIN ISLANDS AFTER IRMA WENT THROUGH THERE. IS IT UP TO THE PRIVATE SECTOR TO HELP WITH OUR NATURAL DISASTERS NOW THAT THE GOVERNMENT IS SLOW TO RESPOND? [00:05:06] Michael Bloomberg: I WOULDN'T SAY IT'S UP TO US. I THINK GOVERNMENTS ARE BIG AND IT TAKES THEM A WHILE TO GET ON THE SCENE AND START HELPING PEOPLE. IN THE MEANTIME, THE PRIVATE SECTOR CAN DO THINGS VERY QUICKLY BECAUSE THEY DON'T HAVE ALL THE BUREAUCRACY. AND I THINK WE HAVE AN OBLIGATION, AS FELLOW HUMAN BEINGS, AND PARTICULARLY IF IT'S IN THE AMERICAN VIRGIN ISLANDS OR PUERTO RICO, AMERICAN TERRITORIES OR IN TEXAS OR MIAMI OR WHEREVER, TO COME TO EACH OTHER'S AID. AND IF YOU REMEMBER 9/11 WHEN WE HAD THE 3,000 PEOPLE KILLED AND TWO BIG BUILDINGS COME DOWN, POTENTIAL TO DESTROY OUR ECONOMY, THE COUNTRY, IN FACT THE WORLD AS WELL, CAME TO NEW YORK'S AID. AND I THINK YOU'VE SEEN SOME OF THE NEW YORK, THE GOVERNOR AND SENT DOWN NATIONAL GUARD TROOPS DOWN TO HELP IN PUERTO RICO. I TOOK DOWN SOME MEDICINES, WHICH JOHNS HOPKINS DONATED TO ST. JOHN AND ST. THOMAS. WE HAVE A BUNCH OF PEOPLE WHO WORKED FOR US IN HIRRICANE SANDY, WHICH WE PUT ON A PLANE AND FLEW THEM DOWN RIGHT AWAY. ONE OF MY PARTNERS HAS A HOUSE DOWN THERE, SO ON THE GROUND WE KNEW WHAT WAS GOING ON. WE CAN HELP AND THEN AFTER A WHILE THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT COMES IN AND TAKES OVER THE BIG CLEANUP JOB. [00:06:10] Speaker 1: WELL, THE NEW BOOK IS CALLED "CLIMATE OF HOPE." IT'S OUT NOW. THE MAN IS MICHAEL BLOOMBERG, EVERYBODY. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. WE'LL BE RIGHT BACK WITH TIM AND ERIC.