Climate Politics
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Congress to vote on clearing way for road through remote wildlife refuge
Congress is expected to vote this month on a potentially precedent-setting land swap that would clear the way for a road through Izembek National Wildlife Refuge in southwestern Alaska. Locals say the road’s main purpose would be to help evacuate sick people during bad weather, but environmentalists and others suspect the move is an attempt […]
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Obama’s team considers how to tackle energy and climate policy
An economic recovery plan will be priority No. 1, President-elect Barack Obama said on Saturday (and enviros hope that plan will include green elements). As part of its economic planning, the Obama team is looking at ways to support the auto industry and at the same time get it involved in helping to cut U.S. […]
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Obama looks to reverse Bush’s drilling efforts in Utah
President-elect Barack Obama may move quickly to reverse the Bush administration’s push to expand oil and gas drilling in Utah, Obama transition team leader John Podesta said on Sunday. “They want to have oil and gas drilling in some of the most sensitive, fragile lands in Utah that they’re going to try to do right […]
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Environmental leaders offer their elevator pitches for Obama
We asked a number of leaders in environment and sustainability issues to imagine they found themselves in an elevator with the president-elect — giving them one minute of his undivided attention. Here are their messages to Obama about how he should approach environment, energy, and climate policy. (For more perspectives, check out Part 1 and […]
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Election-week polls find voters support both clean energy and offshore drilling
Seventy-eight percent of voters believe that investing in clean energy is important to revitalizing the economy, according to a new Zogby International poll commissioned by the National Wildlife Federation. The findings support growing calls for a green economic-stimulus package. The poll of 3,357 voters nationwide, conducted Nov. 5-6, found that support for green investment is […]
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Obama mulls Energy Security Council
The latest, according to "sources close to the transition," is that Obama is thinking of creating an Energy Security Council, modeled on the National Security Council. This was, of course, one of Hillary Clinton’s signature proposals, though she called it the National Energy Council. Interestingly, the idea seems to be coming from John Podesta, who […]
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The intellectual bankruptcy of conservatism: Heritage even opposes energy efficiency
Conservative think tanks remain oblivious and impervious to the facts. They cling to global warming denial and delay even in the face of the remarkable advances both in scientific understanding about global warming and in clean technology solutions. They provide the foundational misanalysis (disanalysis?) for the entire conservative movement — although “movement” must be the […]
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Nader’s challenge
“Whatever you think of Nader’s jeremiad, it is exceedingly timely. Democrats are on the brink of losing their old excuses for timidity and retreat. If the election produces stronger majorities in Congress and a president who has promised big change, Nader’s analysis will be tested in the clearest terms. For the first time in thirty […]
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Governator proposes tax on California oil drilling
As part of a package aimed to address California’s $11.2-billion budget deficit, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Thursday proposed a 9.9 percent tax per barrel on oil drilled in the state. The proposal, a flip-flop from the Governator’s opposition of a similar measure that failed two years ago, immediately garnered the ire of oil companies and […]
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A roundup of possible Cabinet picks for environment-related positions
The punditocracy is amusing itself by trading rumors about who Obama might tap to fill key leadership posts. Here are names that have been circulated thus far for environment-related positions. Warning: wild speculation to follow. EPA Administrator Robert F. Kennedy Jr., attorney for Riverkeeper and the Natural Resources Defense Council Mary Nichols, chair of the […]
