Climate Politics
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Energy crops up at Obama’s 100-day press conference
President Barack Obama told reporters at the press conference marking his 100th day in office that he is “pleased, but not satisfied” with the progress his administration has made thus far, noting energy among the issues they need to keep working on. While the majority of the event was consumed by other pressing issues of […]
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Green jobs for America’s youth
One hundred days ago, President Barack Obama took the oath of office with an overwhelming mandate from America’s youth. Two out of every three citizens under the age of 30 voted for Obama in the 2008 election. We demanded change and Obama promised it. We demanded green jobs, strong climate policy, a safer and more […]
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Obama’s green achievements at 100 days
Seventy-nine percent of Americans think President Barack Obama will do a good job protecting the country’s environment, according to the latest Gallup poll on the topic, released on Earth Day. That includes 95 percent of Democrats, 75 percent of independents and – most surprisingly — 65 percent of Republicans. At 100 days, what has he […]
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As Specter moves to Democratic Party, will he help pass a climate bill?
Washington is buzzing about Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter’s surprise switch to the Democratic Party on Tuesday, a move that will likely give Dems enough votes to overcome filibusters. Specter, a moderate who sits on the Senate Environment and Public Works committee, has been considered a key swing vote on climate and energy, among other issues. […]
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Did environmentalists get played on cap and trade?
Although it’s not his regular beat, Kevin Drum blogs sensibly about carbon policy from time to time. Recently, though, in an otherwise agreeable post about the fecklessness of opponents of climate change legislation, Drum offers up a narrative that is both fairly commonplace and also riddled with misconceptions: It also goes to show how fleeting […]
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What does Specter’s party switch mean for climate and energy?
The big news today is Sen. Arlen Specter’s announcement that he’ll be switching parties from Republican to Democrat. For the best analysis of why he did it (basically, he was fated to lose the upcoming primary), see Eric Kleefeld at TPM. The boss man asked me to weigh in from Paris on what it might […]
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Dingell joins Republicans in calling cap-and-trade an ‘energy tax’
It’s not just Republicans who are calling a cap-and-trade program a tax. “Nobody in this country realizes that cap-and-trade is a tax, and a great big one,” Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.) said at last Friday’s hearing with Al Gore on the House climate bill. Dingell, who until last November chaired the Energy and Commerce Committee, […]
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Debate on climate bill delayed until next week
Reps. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) and Ed Markey (D-Mass.), authors of the draft climate bill in the House that was hotly debated last week, announced on Monday that they will wait until next week to offer the bill up for amendments. That process had originally been planned to take place in the Energy and Environment Subcommittee […]
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Science in the planet’s interest
The White House today announced the members of President Obama’s Council of Advisers on Science and Technology. The distinguished group will be co-lead (unsurprisingly) by John Holdren, the president’s top science adviser and an environmental science expert. Other climate/energy experts on the panel include: Rosina Bierbaum, a widely-recognized expert in climate-change science and ecology, is […]
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A false choice from a familiar skeptic
He’s still skeptical. So are we. Courtesy of Lomborg.comBjorn Lomborg — Danish statistician, self-styled “Skeptical Environmentalist,” and long-time Grist nemesis — found his way onto the New York Times op-ed page over the weekend, arguing that reducing greenhouse gas emissions is a hopeless cause and that public money is better spent on research and development […]
