John Kerry: US has to get rid of ‘crazy’ oil and gas subsidies

As negotiators from nearly 200 countries enter the final week of climate talks at COP28 in Dubai, all eyes will be on the big players and who moves first. In this week’s special edition of Power Play from Dubai, host Anne McElvoy talks to one of the most influential figures in the talks — John Kerry, the U.S. special presidential envoy for climate. A close ally of President Joe Biden and veteran of climate negotiations over several decades, the former secretary of state has the ear of this year's controversial host — COP president Sultan Al-Jaber from the UAE. Kerry also has a domestic audience in mind. He tells Power Play: "The subsidies are crazy and we have them still in the United States. President Biden has said we've gotta get rid of these subsidies. But again ... you have to legislate to do that and we've been pretty gridlocked in our country for a period of time." To reflect on the interview and look ahead to the finale of this year's COP, Anne is joined by POLITICO climate and energy reporter Zack Colman. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices