Muckraker: Grist on Politics

For House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), any action on climate change hinges on Barack Obama winning the White House this fall. Only the bully-pulpit of the presidency can hope to overcome the deep pockets of the “agents of the status quo,” Pelosi said Saturday in a conversation with Grist.

Pelosi came to the Netroots gathering for an “Ask the Speaker” session, where attendees got a chance to pick her brain about what’s going on in Congress. It was during this event that Al Gore made a special guest appearance.

Since Gore recently made an ambitious call to move to 100 percent renewable electricity in 10 years, Pelosi was asked in the session whether she will accept that challenge. “It is absolutely possible,” Pelosi told the crowd.

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After her speech, Pelosi sat down with David Roberts and me to talk about this goal, and about the politics surrounding climate and energy on the Hill.