Climate Politics
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End TVA's special treatment under law, enviros urge Obama
Representatives from 15 environmental advocacy groups have called on President Obama to end the Tennessee Valley Authority’s immunity from federal prosecution for its Kingston coal ash disaster and other violations of federal law. In a letter [pdf] sent to the president Dec. 14, the environmentalists point to several examples of the utility flouting the law […]
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Denialism and the power of fear
There are two types of pesky partisans on the loose right now who refuse to accept reality due to their ideological blindness — birthers and global warming deniers. This realization struck me last week as I listened to Republicans argue that we should let the world boil over, all while they “dithered” over reading silly […]
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A report on stimulus investments in clean energy and the jobs they create
On Tuesday, the Vice President’s office will send Obama a progress report on “The Transformation to A Clean Energy Economy” (PDF). It’s a wide-angle assessment of the stimulus spending that has gone to clean energy projects, the private capital that has been leveraged by those investments, and the jobs that will be saved or created […]
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President Obama to talk “Cash for Caulkers”
On Tuesday morning, President Obama is expected to add details to a new program that will create jobs and cut needless energy consumption through home retrofits. This follows Obama’s request to Congress last week to create a new program to provide incentives to home owners who retrofit their homes to be more energy efficient. I […]
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Don’t watch NYC’s new anti-soda video on a full stomach
Remember NYC’s anti-soda campaign “Don’t Drink Yourself Fat”? Well, prepare yourself. Because the NYC Department of Health has made themselves a YouTube Video. And it’s a doozy: I think I’m going to be sick — which is, of course, the point. So, what do you think — will it stop people from drinking soda or […]
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My Bloggingheads discussion on climate with conservative Jim Manzi
Last week I recorded an episode of Bloggingheads.tv with Jim Manzi, a tech entrepreneur and frequent blogger on conservative websites on the subject of climate change. Manzi is known as one of the (few) reasonable conservatives on the subject — he accepts IPCC science, for starters. But he doesn’t think IPCC results justify the kind […]
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Tuvalu to Obama and the Senate: ‘The fate of my country rests in your hands’ [VIDEO]
Cross-posted from the Wonk Room. Last week, Ian Fry, the Tuvalu delegate to the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, Denmark, made an impassioned plea for legally binding agreements to be made by world leaders to save his nation and other low-lying island states. The tiny Pacific island nation of Tuvalu and other small […]
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What should we watch for during the climate summit’s final days? [UPDATED]
We’re at the halfway point in the U.N. Copenhagen climate summit. Week one brought us the troublesome leaked climate treaty draft; the surprise proposal (from the tiny island nation of Tuvalu) to lower the acceptable rise in global temperature from 2 degrees Centigrade to 1.5; lead U.S. negotiator Todd Stern’s unequivocal rejection of the argument […]
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The importance of Copenhagen and EPA’s endangerment finding
You’ve probably already been bombarded with news about the climate talks in Copenhagen this week and next. The hustle of the news cycle should not diminish the gathering’s importance, though. This international meeting is an opportunity to take great international strides against global warming. Indeed, we have our own team of people in Copenhagen to […]
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Defending the Cantwell/Collins CLEAR Act
Sen. Maria Cantwel (D-Wash.)Sens. Cantwell (D-Wash.) and Collins (D-Ill.) have introduced a welcome addition to the debate over climate change legislation in the Senate. Their bill, with its strong architecture, and simple, fair, and transparent emissions reduction, can help restart the momentum to agree to climate change legislation early next year before the prospect of […]
