Julián Castro to Participate in Climate Town Hall After Hitting Needed Poll Numbers

Julián Castro will participate in the Democratic primary’s climate town hall next month after meeting host CNN’s polling threshold, the campaign’s national press secretary confirmed to Rolling Stone Tuesday.

CNN had previously stated that it would limit invitations to those candidates who had received at least 2 percent in at least four polls approved by the Democratic National Committee conducted between June 28 and August 21.

Though Castro’s campaign tells Rolling Stone that it does not yet have a comprehensive climate plan, the former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development under President Barack Obama is the only candidate to release an environmental platform that specifically addresses lead exposure. In June, after a visit to the crisis-plagued city of Flint, Michigan, Castro pledged to “eliminate lead poisoning as a major public health threat” in the United States as president. His plan includes the establishment of a Presidential Taskforce on Lead in Communities, which would work with various agencies across the federal government to coordinate responses to states and localities.

The town hall is scheduled for September 4th. CNN on Monday confirmed participation from eight other candidates: Joe Biden, Cory Booker, Amy Klobuchar, Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Beto O’Rourke, Pete Buttigieg and businessman Andrew Yang. Democratic candidate Kamala Harris said Tuesday she would attend, after previously saying she had a scheduling conflict. ABC News reporter Zohreen Shah reported early Monday that the conflict arose from the fact that Harris had two fundraisers previously scheduled in Los Angeles by “top bundlers.”

Without dramatic reductions in human emissions of greenhouse gases, climate change threatens to reorder the global environment with massive and deadly effects for humanity.