Readers React: Jerry Brown lost his credibility on the environment long before he endorsed Hillary Clinton

To the editor: The biggest reason I support Democratic candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders for president is his uncompromising stand on climate change, a carbon tax and a ban on fracking. I also used to admire Gov. Jerry Brown for his green policies. (“Why Gov. Jerry Brown endorsed Hillary, despite a bitter history with the Clintons,” May 31)

Your article notes that Brown’s endorsement of Hillary Clinton a week before election day in California “may not have the impact that it could have a few weeks earlier.” I would add it would have carried a lot more weight before Brown began dismantling his own environmentalist reputation, most recently letting the executive directors of the California Coastal Commission and the South Coast Air Quality Management District be removed under industry pressure.

At this point, I am no more likely to follow a Brown endorsement than I am to drink well water polluted by fracking — which Brown also backs.

Doug Molitor, Covina

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To the editor: The history you mentioned between Brown and the Clintons is interesting, but it is possible that Brown actually thinks Clinton would be the best president.

There is also a further reason Brown may see the need for a strong Clinton showing in California. Libertarians are on the ballot for president in all 50 states, and some Republicans have approached neoconservative David French to head a third-party run. It doesn’t matter to them if these candidates win outright.

With enough support, no candidate would get the required 270 electoral votes to be president, and the Republican-dominated House would end up choosing the winner.

When the primary and partisan blinders are removed, Clinton will be someone a lot of people support. But I suspect that Brown sees now as better than later for that support to be shown.

Jeffrey Ainis, Alhambra

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