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

After gorging at the Strafford GOP BBQ on Saturday, Barack Obama hosted an ice cream social in Dover last night.  More FOOD!!! Senator Obama emerged from a wooded area with his wife, his two young daughters, and a group of advisors that included Rep. Carol Shea Porter to speak to the large Dover crowd.

His stump speech included a few references to climate change.  Once again, he told the crowd that if we raised fuel efficiency standards for cars to 45mpg, we would replace the equivalent of all of the oil that we import from the Persian Gulf.  “In the process we can create green technologies that create jobs and businesses,” Senator Obama was then distracted by a fleeting Obama 08 balloon but refocused to say that “we can generate an entire new economy based on green technology that can help to provide jobs and opportunity in rural New Hampshire and all across the country.”

Obama shook what must have been 300 hands, said his goodbyes to the Dover crowd, but before he could get away I asked him if he would on implement a climate change plan before the primary.  He responded, saying that he was the co-sponsor of the strongest cap and trade bill in the Senate right now.  I then asked him if there was anything beyond to Boxer/Sanders Legislation.  He responded: “I will probably combine that with a fuel efficiency standard increase, a renewable energy standard.  There will be four or five pieces.”

A similar interaction transpired after Obama’s event in Derry this afternoon.  Again, a fellow employee asked Senator Obama if he planned on implementing a climate change plan, and again he referenced three pieces of legislation.

Legislation for economy-wide emissions reductions is an undeniably important piece of a comprehensive climate change plan, as it is the first of the carbon coalition’s seven benchmarks, but it is only one of seven benchmarks.  Senator Obama’s focus on legislation is reflective of his experience in government which is primarily as a legislator on the state and national level.

I realize that Obama was just shaking hands and trying to leave the events when he faced these questions, but a focus on legislation ignores fundamental elements of a climate change plan.  A comprehensive plan must include international cooperation, federal planning, aggressive R&D, and a shift in budget priorities.

Listen to Obama: Dover 1, Dover 2, Derry Coming Soon