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More speculation, and real news from the Obama transition team

The Obama team has tapped a former high-level Clinton appointee to run the transition efforts for EPA, Interior, Energy, and Agriculture, Greenwire reports. The person picked for the job is David Hayes, who served as deputy secretary at Interior during the Clinton years. Reporting to Hayes will be Robert Sussman, who served as deputy administrator […]

Obama’s inner circle

This isn’t really eco-related, but it strikes me as an amazing historical artifact so I’m sharing it. This is an interview with Obama’s close circle of advisers, conducted less than two hours after the election results were announced, 04 Nov 2008: Their obvious affection, for one another and for their candidate, is astonishing to anyone […]

The Obama administration’s coal-related appointments: worth watching

Nobody reports on coal and Appalachia better than Ken Ward Jr. down at the Charleston Gazette. He’s got a good article up on what the coal industry should expect from an Obama administration, namely that he will "reverse Bush administration rule changes, beef up enforcement, and put the nation’s first ever limits on carbon dioxide […]

Wisconsin doesn’t want no stinkin’ coal plant

Wisconsin regulators on Tuesday unanimously rejected Alliant Energy’s proposal to build a new coal-fired power plant, in large part due to concerns over — you betcha — climate change.

How to green your bathroom

No need to go all ape sh*t, greening your bathroom is easy.   Splish splash, I was takin’ a bathLong about a Saturday nightA-rub-dub, just relaxin’ in the tubThinkin’ everything was all right. Poor Bobby Darin — there he was, thinking everything was all right, when he really should have been taking a four-minute shower […]

What’s the best way to phase out the huge fleet of aging coal plants?

The anti-coal movement has a lot to celebrate right now. Of the 151 coal plants on the drawing boards as of the May 2007 report by the Energy Department, 82 have now been abandoned, blocked, or placed on hold. In September, Juliette Jowitt of the UK’s Manchester Guardian wrote: In a few years, the backlash […]

The Economist blows it on the Green New Deal

The Economist is probably the smartest newsweekly going, so it’s pretty stunning how bad this editorial is. It shows an almost willful disengagement with Obama’s proposals. The editorial argues that the newly popular idea of a Green New Deal is misguided. Yes, we need to address climate change. Yes, we need public spending to stimulate […]

Will new prez toe the agribiz line on food policy?

Where does President-elect Obama stand on food policy — with the interests of Big Food and its Congressional water-carriers, or with the budding sustainable-food/food-justice movement? I guess the first substantial indicator will come when he names his secretary of agriculture. Until that time, we’ve got some data points to consider. • On the scary side, […]

Dems willing to keep Lieberman so he can work on energy issues

Senate Democrats are trying to figure out what to do with Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.), after the former Democrat (who still caucuses with the party) campaigned aggressively for Republican John McCain. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid doesn’t seem to be pushing Lieberman out of the party. Obama’s spokesfolk say the president-elect isn’t going to “hold any […]

Who should be next head of the EPA?

There’s been a flurry of speculation about Obama’s choice to run EPA. Kate links to some background for all the candidates here. I believe every name that has been mentioned as a possible candidate appears in the poll below. Vote! Who should Barack Obama appoint as head of the U.S. EPA? ( surveys)