The Political Climate: an ongoing commentary on the NH Primary and Climate Change

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You say good Bayh and I say hello

Evan Bayh was in western NH December 10. 

From the wires: 

“CORNISH, N.H. Indiana Senator Evan Bayh told New Hampshire voters today that he would make reducing carbon dioxide emissions and increasing American energy independence his top priorities if he were elected president. 

Bayh told Democrats in Keene and Cornish today that there’s bipartisan support for better policies on both fronts. He says Republicans increasingly support alternative energy because reducing America’s dependence on foreign oil would enhance national security, while Democrats want to slow global warming” (read entire story from WCAX-TV here).

Thanks Mr. Bayh, for stopping by.  But don’t give one party all the credit on global warming.  The next time you are in town, let’s all hope you’ll acknowledge that global warming is an issue important to both republicans and democrats.  This issue is going nowhere without sustained and strong support from both sides of the aisle.   And since global warming is a top priority for you, Senator Bayh, fill us in on your solutions during your next Granite state tour. 

Barak freight train 

Senator Obama in Manchester 

We met up with the Illinois Senator in a room of about 100 people before joining the crowd over at the Center of NH.  Obama quoted Louis Brandeis: “The most important political office is that of the private citizen”.  How true.  Obama and over a thousand people were greeted by Carbon Coalition volunteers who devoted a 45 degree balmy December Sunday  afternoon carrying  signs reading “Save Our Syrup-Stop Global Warming” outside the hotel, and passing out stickers. 

“First of all I wanted to thank whoever organized the weather for today, I know this is a typical December in NH, 40 degrees and sunny.”  But as Obama pointed out later in his speech, “although we enjoy the 40 degree weather in NH” the issue of climate change needs to be addressed.  He said that “there are a couple of holdouts in the White House,” and despite an overwhelming number of scientists sharing the same opinion on climate change, the White House continues to ignore these warnings.  Obama’s speech is on video here. 

Obama did meet the rhetoric test, nothing more at this point.  Here’s the take from a volunteer -  very telling: 

“As I approached people with the sign and stickers, I received such amazing responses of understanding, support and endorsement on the issue of carbon emissions, climate change and global warming (people responded using all three monikers) - there was one exception - at one point a gaggle of what I thought were some Obama staff - I offered the sticker, they refused, and in a more restrained effort on my part, I said under my breath, (‘you might find down the road that you should be wearing the message!!’) though I really wanted to chase after them and give them a history lesson on presidential candidates that ignored issues of importance to NH voters.  

Anyway, as Obama was warming up the room with his deliberate and carefully orchestrated rhetoric, I again mused on whether he would mention global warming, climate change, energy policies.  I, then, of course, was very heartened by both the length and the substance of his comments BUT….what was really thrilling to me was the amazing response from the crowd - probably the loudest, longest and most hearty chorus of cheers, clapping and voices united in common concern -  may the voices only grow louder!!” 

Most telling, therefore, was the response from the 1500 people (witnessed by more than 100 reporters and journalists). 

Also, if your looking for stocking stuffers or need to replace a light bulb, head to the Lowe’s closest to you.  They are offering a full rebate on compact fluorescent bulbs!

Elizabeth Kolbert has an opinion piece about Massachusetts vs. the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in this week’s edition of The New Yorker.  Kolbert claims “just about anyone familiar with the Clean Air Act can see the White House’s narrow reading of the law for what it is: a deliberate misreading.”  She points to specific wording in the CAA that loosely defines possible environmental hazards that can impact human health, the most significant being an effect on “climate.” Kolbert also argues that the outcome of the case, which is presently at the Supreme Court, probably won’t bring significant changes.  No matter what decision is made, the responsibility for writing any regulations would still lie in the hands of the EPA, and Kolbert believes it’s hard to see how that “would represent a solution.”

Today the National Journal released “Insiders Poll 2008.”  There are no surprises about the party leaders as Sen. Hillary Clinton tops the charts for Democrats and Sen. John McCain does the same on the Republican side.  However, since the poll was last conducted in May, seats 2 through 10 have begun the musical chair game.  Sen. Barack Obama has moved from being ranked 10th in his party to replacing Sen. John Edwards as 2nd.  Republican Sen. George Allen got bumped off the list after ranking 2nd in May, while Mitt Romney quickly jumped in grabbing the spot.  Compare their list to the Washington Post’s “The Fix” to get a sense of the “inside the beltway” handicapping.

With his popularity skyrocketing on charts, it’s appropriate to wonder: will this “Obamamania” last?  “Political Junkie,” a blog from NPR, and the “Graniteprof” examine this question and this latest political “phenomenon.” 

NPR covered Sen. James Inhofe’s final hearing as chairman of the Environment and Public Works Committee yesterday.  Inhofe argued that media is biased towards global warming “alarmism,” and believes that they are not not properly communicating the truth behind the issue.  At the hearing Inhofe said the hype around global warming is due to ”one-side reporting” by news sources such as ABC, 60 Minutes, Time Magazine, the Associated Press, and Reuters “just to name a few.”  Sen. Barbara Boxer, Inhofe’s replacement as Committee chair in January, responded to Inhofe’s claims.  She said she agreed that it is important for the media to cover all aspects of a story, but as policy makers they must pay attention to facts and they cannot turn their backs to an overwhelming scientific consensus (listen to the whole story here from NPR).

The New York Times reports here on a new study released in the journal Nature earlier this week.  The study found that warmer years cause a decline in phytoplankton in oceans, particularly in the tropics, which scientists expect will have a large impact on fisheries and ecosystems as oceans continue to rise due to the effects of global warming.

Yesterday at Bedford, NH’s monthly Politics and Eggs breakfast featured speaker, Mark Halperin, ABC’s political news director, stated that if Sen. John McCain and Sen. Hillary Clinton end up running against each other, McCain will be our next president: “I certainly would not rule her out, I think she’s strongly positioned but I would make him a favorite today.”  Halperin also said that Clinton is a stronger contender than Obama because she has been planning a run for years, whereas Obama has probably only considered it for less than one (read the entire article in the Union Leader here).  Someone had better fill Halperin on the latest development in the Granite State–according the Union Leader’s “Granite Status” Obama’s visit this upcoming Sunday sold out yesterday after 1,500 tickets (at $25 per ticket!) quickly were snatched up. 

Laurie David is upset that the National Science Teacher Association rejected an offer to receive 50,000 free copies of “An Inconvenient Truth” (reported by TPC here).  If her genuine concern is about spreading the word on global warming, and not promoting her movie, then she shouldn’t fear–”Happy Feet” is reaching a much larger audience.

The top box-office hit for the last three weeks, projected to rake in over $180 million in the U.S. alone (nearly eight times that of “An Inconvenient Truth”), sends a message about human induced problems that are affecting the wildlife in Antarctica.  “Happy Feet” certainly should not be considered an educational film, but with underlying messages about global warming, oil spills, and threatened fish populations, the movie that is reaching tens of millions of children with a message they rarely receive.  Matt Rand, director of the marine fish campaign at the National Environmental Trust, says “the generation that will be seeing this movie, the children, will be the ones facing the critical issues when the big problems are going to happen.”  Maybe the NSTA will be more likely to accept a cartoon than a PowerPoint (read the entire article in the Boston Globe here).

Sen. Barbara Boxer, who will replace James Inhofe as chair of the Environment and Public Works Committee in January, is announcing her goals for her new position.  “We’re going to for once, finally, make this committee an environment committee, not an anti-environment committee,” she said in an interview with the Associated Press earlier this week (read the article here in New York Times).  Her goal is to enact “the nation’s first mandatory limits on industrial emissions of carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases.”  This could become even more of a tricky task considering her predeccesor, Inhofe, is currently holding a hearing about what he believes is a media “fanned alarmism” about global warming.