Trump withdraws US from Paris climate change agreement

 President Trump has announced that the US will be withdrawing from the Paris Accord. The president made the statement today from the White House Rose Garden.

The international agreement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions was made in 2015 and President Obama signed the US on last November. The 143 countries that have ratified the agreement recognize a number of goals, which include limiting global temperature increases to less than 2 degrees Celsius.

Obama joined the Paris Accord without a vote from Congress, meaning Trump can abandon the climate change agreement without a vote as well.

My job as President is to do everything within my power to give America a level playing field. #AmericaFirst🇺🇸
➡️https://t.co/9VOb99W42rpic.twitter.com/2Lg8gxxXxV

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 1, 2017

Many begged Trump to keep the US in, including 25 companies that penned an open letter published in the New York Times on May 8th. Yesterday, Elon Musk threatened to cease advising the president as part of Trump's Strategic and Policy Forum if he decided to drop US participation in the Paris Accord.