Ismay’s letter contains another stunningly candid admission when he states his “sincere concern that overly aggressive emissions targets may have unintended and harmful consequences on those we most need to protect.”
Embattled Massachusetts climate official David Ismay resigns ‘immediately’
Adds in resignation letter shared with Herald: ‘I would like to apologize, again, for my comments’
David Ismay, the Baker administration $130,000-a-year climate change undersecretary, has resigned “immediately” citing his incendiary comments.
In a resignation letter he shared with the Herald today, Ismay writes: “It is with great regret that I submit my resignation, effectively immediately, from the position of Undersecretary for Climate Change in the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs.”
The resignation letter is addressed to his boss, Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs Kathleen Theoharides, and is dated Wednesday, Feb. 10.
Ismay heads out the door after a series of questionable comments about forcing homeowners, motorists and fishermen to prepare for hard times as the state pushes for so-called Net Zero emissions in the years to come.
Even Gov. Charlie Baker bristled at Ismay’s rhetoric, saying the undersecretary does not speak for him.
Ismay laded on the hot seat after MassFiscal posted a video of the undersecretary saying the state needs to “break their will” and “turn the screws on” ordinary people to force changes in their consumption of heating fuels and gasoline. Ismay described the ordinary people as the “person across the street” and the “senior on fixed income.”
That didn’t sit well with the governor.
“First of all, no one who works in our administration should ever say or think anything like that — ever,” Baker said late last week. “Secondly, Secretary Theoharides is going to have a conversation with him about that.”
This morning MassFiscal spokesman Paul Diego Craney said Ismay is an example of unelected officials with too much power.
“For the past year, we’ve continually warned the public regarding the dangerous amount of power being handed over to unelected bureaucrats through various climate initiatives such as the Transportation & Climate Initiative (TCI) and the pending climate bill,” Craney said.
Craney said MassFiscal will “remain vigilant in holding the people in power accountable.”
This is a developing story. Here is the rest of his letter:
Ismay adds: “As Undersecretary for Climate Change, I have worked diligently to ensure the health and welfare of residents across Massachusetts in the face of the global climate crisis. Serving the people of Massachusetts as part of the Baker-Polito Administration has been the honor of a lifetime, and I am proud of the equitable climate solutions we achieved together.
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“I would like to apologize, again, for my comments at last month’s Vermont Climate Council meeting. My inability to clearly communicate during that discussion reflected poorly on the Governor, on you, and on our hardworking staff. Although my comments were interpreted by some as placing the burden of climate change on hardworking families and vulnerable populations, my intent was the opposite. In the entirety of my remarks, and as I have elsewhere, I was urging caution in order to minimize such impacts out of a sincere concern that overly aggressive emissions targets may have unintended and harmful consequences on those we most need to protect.
“Thank you again for the opportunity to serve you, the Governor, and the people of the Commonwealth.”
