At the first presidential debate of the season, held last night in Boston, Al Gore stressed his commitment to protect Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) and other “environmental treasures” from oil drilling. He said he would help ease the energy crunch by supporting conservation and development of clean, efficient technologies through tax breaks and other incentives. George W. Bush presented an energy strategy that focused on drilling for more oil on U.S. lands, including ANWR. Thousands of people hit the streets of Boston yesterday to protest the exclusion of Green Party candidate Ralph Nader from the debate, and things got nasty late at night when police used tear gas and billy clubs against some protestors who refused to disperse. Nader managed to get a ticket to the debate, but was turned away at the door.
