Obama's "New Energy for America"As a senator, President-elect Barack Obama had a better-than-average voting record regarding the environment. But is his past record a good indicator of future performance as the Commander-in-chief?
The League of Conservation Voters (LCV), which rates Congress members' environmental records, gave Obama a score of 67% last year -- fourteen points above the average. His senatorial lifetime score was 86%. No wonder so many conservationists and environmentalists rallied behind his presidential campaign.
Mr Obama has a strong understanding of the environmental mess we're in. He co-sponsored the Senate's most forceful climate bill -- the Boxer-Sanders Global Warming Pollution Reduction Act. Its aim is to reduce carbon emissions 80 percent by 2050.
He also realizes that America's dependence on Middle East oil and the country's national security are intertwined. In an interview last year with Grist.org, he said, "our dependence on fossil fuels from the Middle East is distorting our foreign policies."
His "New Energy for America" plan is bold. It calls for, among other things, a $150 billion private-sector investment to create five million green jobs, saving more oil than is currently imported from Venezuela and the Middle East within ten years and the implementation of a cap-and-trade program to achieve the Boxer-Sanders goals.
Mr Obama's promise to require oil companies to use their windfall profits to give $500 back in immediate relief to individuals -- while an effective vote-enticer -- does not move the energy ball downfield towards independence. But his desire to create a "Green Jobs Corp" -- an organization that will give disadvantaged youths an opportunity to learn new work skills while helping their communities increase their energy efficiency -- is an inspired concept.
And he has found a good partner in Senator and Vice President-elect Joe Biden, who said at his debate with Governor Sarah Palin, "There are real changes going on in our climate...the cause is man-made...that's why the polar icecap is melting." He co-sponsored a bill to end the illegal trade in whale meat and another one to strengthen prohibitions on animal fighting. The LCV gave the senator a score of 95%.
The stage seems to be set for change, especially considering the Democratic majority in Congress. And no matter what Mr Obama accomplishes on the environmental front, he will most surely do better than America's outgoing chief. When President Bush makes his Oval Office exit in January, he will not only go down as the most unpopular American president in modern times, but also as the one with the worst environmental record in our lifetime. Change, indeed.
photo: Justin Sloan
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