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to be present for the event as well. This anticipated joint appearance marks a dramatic change from many recent past campaigns in North Carolina, when major state office Democratic nominees made themselves scarce around the visits by their party's presidential candidates. Environmental issues have become a major point of contrast between Clinton and Republican presumptive nominee Donald Trump. As noted in a Washington Post article on the North American leadership summit last week, 'Democrat Hillary Clinton has said if she's elected president she will work to ensure that half of the nation's electric power will come from clean energy sources by 2030. GOP presumptive nominee Donald Trump has emphasized the need to continue extracting fossil fuels, including coal, to power the nation's electrical grid and has questioned much of the Obama administration's effort to forge international climate agreements." Cl nale Clian.,g e pdale.- North rth ! merican Leader (("onimit to Clean 1,,nergy At the North American Leaders Summit last week, the presidents of the United States and Mexico and the prime minister of Canada announced agreements on steps to fight climate change, including the goal of producing per cent of the continent's energy from clean sources by 2025. Measures specifically cited in the leaders' ioint statement included expanding renewable energy generation in the power grid, adding to cross - border transmission lines to share renewables- produced electricity, expanding clean vehicle fleets and other efficiency investments, and extending tax credits for clean energy production and investment. The joint statement reads in part, "The Paris Agreement was a turning point for our planet, representing unprecedented accord on the urgent need to take action to combat climate change through innovation and deployment of low- carbon solutions. North America has the capacity, resources and the moral imperative to show strong leadership building on the Paris Agreement and promoting its early entry into force. We recognize that our highly integrated economies and energy systems afford a tremendous opportunity to harness growth in our continuing transition to a clean energy economy. Our actions to align climate and energy policies will protect human health and help level the playing field for our businesses, households, and workers. In recognition of our close ties and shared vision, we commit today to an ambitious and enduring North American Climate, Clean Energy, and Environment Partnership that sets us firmly on the path to a more sustainable future."