Last month, President Obama proposed a plan that will, in his words, “pave the way toward a sustainable energy future” by using billions of dollars from offshore oil and gas leases to fund clean energy technology. While we share the vision of a sustainable energy future, the President’s proposal exemplifies two major reasons his “all of the above” energy strategy won’t get us there.
First, the President’s proposal calls for more pollution today to generate money for a clean energy tomorrow. This is absurd, especially when we can have clean energy today if the president uses the tools already at his disposal right now to make it happen. Let’s be clear: clean energy isn’t just the energy of the future–it is today’s energy. In fact, all new electricity generated in the United States this January was from wind and solar–no nuclear, no coal, and no natural gas. This is happening right now, not in some sci fi tomorrow.
The question about the future is not if clean energy will be cost effective. We know it will be. The question is if the presidents’ children, and ours, will grow u... Read more
