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  • Pollution limits are essential for clean energy investments

    This piece was co-written by Kate Gordon, vice president for energy policy at American Progress. A critical element of President Obama’s domestic agenda is transforming the United States to a low-carbon-pollution economy, which would spur recovery, create jobs, and generate long-term prosperity. The president also made clear in his State of the Union address this […]

  • Green celebs bring sexy back to Senate politics

    The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) is taking a page out of David Roberts’ book by railing on the U.S. Senate to pass the clean energy jobs bill in this celebri-full video. It formally launches a new video advocacy campaign called This is Our Moment, which is banking on the pure pop-sexiness of stars like […]

  • Obama seizes the energy opportunity

    During President-Elect Barack Obama’s transition, the Center for American Progress proposed a 10-point clean-energy agenda for the president and Congress that would speed the economic transformation to a clean energy economy. A review of these items today finds that all were adopted or are working their way through the process. This is a startling achievement […]

  • Why the Copenhagen Accord boosts the odds for Senate passage of bipartisan climate legislation

    The 15th United Nations climate summit has just ended in Copenhagen after a tense two weeks of negotiations between the developed and developing world. An “environmental Woodstock” to some, a high stakes diplomatic showdown to others, the meeting led to some critical but incomplete agreements. Now that it’s over, the world’s attention will focus on […]

  • Kerry-Boxer bill will cut the deficit; Will ‘fiscal conservatives’ sign on?

    The Congressional Budget Office — the arbiter of the federal budget impact of all legislation — just released an analysis that the Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act, S. 1733, … would reduce budget deficits (or increase future surpluses) by about $21 billion over the 2010-2019 period … In years after 2019, direct spending […]

  • Susan Collins (R-Maine) [UPDATED]

    Susan Collins Though Sen. Susan Collins seems supportive of climate legislation, she remains a toss-up in the debate over the Kerry-Boxer bill. In this letter sent to a constituent in early December, she calls for “meaningful action” to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions, while saying that solutions must be “reasonable”: Dear [Constituent], Thank you for contacting me […]

  • John Cornyn (R-Texas)

    Sen. John Cornyn is expected to vote against a climate bill, and that’s confirmed in this letter he wrote to a constituent.  He argues that the Kerry-Boxer climate bill would “create a massive new government bureaucracy, raise energy prices, increase taxes, and send American jobs overseas.” Dear [Constituent]: Thank you for contacting me regarding a […]

  • Daniel Akaka (D-Hawaii)

    Sen. Daniel Akaka is considered a likely “yes” vote on climate legislation, but in this letter sent to a constituent in late November 2009, he doesn’t reveal much of anything about his views on climate change or what should be done about it. Dear [Constituent]: Thank you for your comments on climate change and energy […]

  • Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.)

    Sen. Charles Schumer is an advocate for climate legislation and said in July that he believed such legislation would attract the 60 needed votes.  In this letter to a constituent, Schumer expresses his support for a bill “that gets America running on clean energy, ends our dependence on foreign oil and includes energy incentives that […]