transition talk

Emanuel, tapped as Obama’s chief of staff, has a respectable green record

Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.) has accepted Barack Obama’s offer to serve as his chief of staff. As chair of the Democratic Caucus, Emanuel is the fourth-ranking Democrat in the House. Before his election to the House in 2003, he was a senior adviser to President Bill Clinton. The chief of staff is essentially charged with […]

Barbara Boxer wants Mary Nichols at the EPA

Bloomberg has a piece up about possible Obama EPA picks. The reporter seems to think that Kathleen McGinty is the front-runner. But Barbara Boxer is thinking what I’m thinking: “Mary Nichols would be a great choice,” Senator Barbara Boxer, a California Democrat, said in an interview today. “If I was asked by the Obama administration, […]

One more environmental Cabinet position that counts particularly for oceans

In its feature “Stocking the Cabinet,” Grist speculated on Barack Obama’s potential nominees for the “top environmental jobs” in his administration. For the oceans, however, the most pertinent post isn’t the head of the EPA, or the secretary of agriculture, energy, or interior, all of which were included in Grist’s guessing game. Guess what is? […]

More EPA speculation

Reuters adds a few names to the list of candidates being considered to head EPA: Governors Janet Napolitano of Arizona and Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas, and World Resources Institute head honcho Jonathan Lash. That’s in addition to the usual names of Kathleen McGinty and Mary Nichols. I’m beginning to think reporters are just pulling these […]

Obama names advisers to his transition team for energy and environmental issues

The Obama campaign on Wednesday officially announced members of the transition team that will set up the next administration. Included in the advisory board are Carol Browner, administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency under President Clinton, and Federico Peña, who served in the Clinton administration as secretary of transportation from 1993 to 1997 and secretary […]

Obama considers RFK Jr. for EPA

Holy sh*t: President-elect Barack Obama is strongly considering Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to head the Environmental Protection Agency, a Cabinet post, Democratic officials told Politico. I must say, I don’t see this: The selection of Kennedy would be a shrewd early move for the new presidential team. Obama advisers said the nomination would please both […]

More speculation on Obama cabinet picks

Politico takes a look at a possible Obama staff and cabinet. (See also Grist’s look at possible green-related Obama appointees.) It gives a mixed view with some knockouts and some … not-so-knockouts. These EPA pics don’t thrill me: Former Sen. Lincoln Chafee (R-R.I.); Kathleen McGinty, former head of the Pennsylvania Environmental Protection Agency My vote? […]

How could Obama put climate and energy policy under a single roof?

Last month, the U.K. government grouped energy and environmental policy under a single department. Last week, the Canadian government put the economy, environment, and energy security together under a single ministry. This reflects growing realization in the developed world that environmental policy is no longer an add-on, no longer an altruistic affair to be addressed […]

Obama transition teams wrestles with fiscal policy

Behind the scenes, Barack Obama is busy putting together “the largest and most disciplined presidential transition team anyone can recall,” says Edward Luce in the Financial Times. Obviously this is important for any incoming president, but with so many crises converging, it takes on particular salience this time around. Obama’s team is deep in the […]