Good morning. It's Thursday, April 22, 2021 -- the 51st Earth Day. As was true for last year's golden anniversary of the inaugural event, the world is grappling with a deadly pandemic and its economic impact. The U.S. senator who dreamed up this annual booster shot for environmental awareness understood the tension between principled action and fiscal considerations. But Gaylord Nelson made clear where his priorities stood. In his 2002 book, "Beyond Earth Day," he wrote: "The economy is a wholly owned subsidiary of the environment, not the other way around."
Carl M. Cannon is the Washington bureau chief for RealClearPolitics. Reach him on Twitter @CarlCannon.