Outraged DC commuters threaten to SHOOT climate change protesters after they blocked busy freeway
Commuters in Washington got into a raging confrontation with climate activists on their way to the nation's capital Friday, with one even threatening to shoot protesters blocking the highway. A group called , which is demanding President declare a 'climate emergency,' sat themselves down on I-395, one of the main routes to Washington, and refused to get up. That soon prompted a furious backlash from drivers. One woman got out of her car and threatened the rabble with a gun if they refused to let her past to go see her mom, while an irate man ripped placards out of the group's hands and tossed them above the median and onto the other side of the interstate. After half an hour, police arrived to arrest the group. Blocking roads is aping a tactic that's largely been used in the United Kingdom, where protesters have interrupted traffic to sound the alarm about . Declare Emergency's website and demands compare the threat of climate to Hitler's Nazi regime in prior to World War II, when 'President Roosevelt united the country and led us into a struggle for universal decency.' Those trying to get to work Friday morning were seen on video not exactly feeling the unity, with one getting out of her car and threatening, 'Move before I pull my gun out.' Footage showed another driver angrily confronting the group, saying 'People are trying to get to work, hundreds of people trying to get to work. What are you doing?' The group tweeted after the protest, 'We do not enjoy putting our bodies on the line, we do it because we must. We will keep doing it until [Biden] declares a climate emergency and stops fossil fuel extraction on federal and indigenous land.' A suggested that between 2005 and 2019 of US oil, gas, and coal production came from federal lands and waters. A driver eventually stole two of the activists' signs and threw them into the opposite lane. The protesters eventually let them through. One of the commuters began to try and preach the Bible to the Declare Emergency protesters. Local authorities eventually arrived about a half hour into the protest and arrested the activists, to the applause of several drivers. In July, President Biden warned members of Congress that if they don't take action to combat then he will. Biden's threat came after Democratic Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia torpedoed the president's green agenda on Capitol Hill when he said he could not support billions of dollars in new climate spending as part of a larger economic package. The president has vowed to use his executive powers since Manchin, who represents a state with a major coal industry, made his intentions clear. But the president stopped short of declaring a national emergency on Wednesday, which would unlock federal resources to deal with the issue, despite heavy pressure from members of his party to do so. He has still yet to declare one, but the White House said a few months ago that it was an option. 'The climate emergency is not going to happen tomorrow, but we still have it on the table,' White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said at Tuesday's daily press briefing. 'I don't have a date circled in the calendar.' But the president will announce federal funds to help heat-ravaged communities in his remarks. And he'll announce new initiatives to bolster the domestic offshore wind industry. Last week Biden said he would start taking executive action on climate issues after the talks between Manchin and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer came to a standstill.