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

Add another podium to the stage; Alan Keyes has entered the race.  According to the NY Times, this is Keyes’ third bid for the Republican nomination. 

While his candidacy is now official with the FEC, Keyes doesn’t appear to have his website complete yet.  It seems his staff forgot to include anything on climate change, energy or even the environment under the “issues” page.  Oops! 

His website does offer a section describing Keyes as the “grassroots voice” noting that Keyes frequently points out that “the people themselves, at the grassroots, can steer our country in whatever direction they choose — provided they have the will do the so, sufficient strength in numbers, and faith in God’s providence, as did our forebears.”

Well Mr. Keyes, 164 towns in NH passed a climate change resolution calling for national leadership to combat climate change.  This grassroots effort is asking you to respond and offer a plan for what you would do to reduce carbon emissions and combat global warming.

Mitt Romney held a virtual “Ask Mitt Anything” last night for voters all across the country.  Unfortunately, Mitt did not answer any questions about his plan to combat climate change.  An FOTPC told us that Romney took a number of ”softball” questions and shared with voters that his favorite cereal is the granola that his wife makes him.   

With the smell of car emissions filling the air, Mayor Rudy Giuliani greeted racing fans at this weekend’s NASCAR race in Loudon.  We have not heard any reports from FOTPCs on Giuliani’s visit, but NPR’s Living on Earth did run a story on Giuliani’s environmental record and platform - the first installment in a new series focusing on the green issues playing a role in this year’s road to the White House.

John Herrington, Giuliani’s top advisor on energy, emphasized that Giuliani rejects a cap on carbon emissions.  This is no surprise to those who have had a chance to listen to Giuliani’s NH quotes on our audio page.  “It’s better to address the issue not through some sort of regulatory environment,” said Herrington,” it’s better that we go to sources of energy that don’t have as much emissions.”  Okay, but how?  What’s his plan?

Gene Karpinski of the League of Conservation Voters feels that “if you’re not for mandates, you’re not serious about solving the problem.”  I say, that if you don’t have specifics within your plan, you’re not serious about solving the problem. 

The John Edwards campaign reportedly distributed 8,000 white spruce saplings while canvassing throughout New Hampshire this weekend.  Edwards for President national campaign manager Congressman David Bonior said that this move reflects Edwards’ “bold plans to combat global warming, achieve energy independence, and create good paying jobs.”

One final question for the day: Where have all the candidates gone?

John McCain kicked off his ‘No Surrender’ rallies yesterday in East Rochester before heading west to Franklin and Concord.  The McCain campaign is holding ’No Surrender’ rallies in VFW and American Legion posts around the state to defend the ’surge’ in Iraq and show support for the troops by collecting care packages at the door.  Not surprisingly there was little talk of anything else in Rochester and Concord other than military action and the Iraq war.

McCain did not draw the parallel between our nation’s addiction to fossil fuels and our involvement in the Middle East, a favorite theme of Republican and Democratic candidates alike.  We hope to see Senator McCain again in the granite state, especially at the Clean Air-Cool Planet Global Warming & Energy Solutions conference scheduled for October 12-13 in Manchester.

The upcoming Global Warming & Energy Solutions conference is the major climate event in NH on the road to the primary, but there are other opportunities to learn about local solutions to climate change in the near future.  This Sunday the Greener Hopkinton’s ECO-FAIR at Hopkinton High School will take place from 2-4pm. 

Jim MerKel will give the keynote address for the first hour of the event.  Merkel is the author of Radical Simplicity: Small Footprints on a Finite Earth and will speak on sustainable living in the United States.  Various eco-friendly exhibitors, including the Carbon Coalition, will be sharing their ideas, actions, and products for the second hour of the eco-fair.  The event is free and open to the public.

While FOTPC’s here in NH are helping the presidential candidates further the dialogue about their plans to combat global warming, the Arctic is preparing to say goodbye to polar bears - forever.

The U.S. Geological Survey just released a series of reports that will inform the U.S. Government on its upcoming decision over whether or not to list the polar bear as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act. 

Polar bears, which rely on sea ice to hunt seals, are at risk of extinction due to the increasing loss of sea ice.  With warming temperatures in the Arctic, sea ice reductions are on the rise posing great risk to polar bear habitat.

Dr. Neil Hamilton, director of the WWF Arctic Programme commented that ”The world is still discussing whether or not to take rapid action against climate change.  Politicians are fiddling at the edges while the Arctic wilderness succumbs to global warming; but in the meantime, they are sending one of the world’s greatest species on its way to extinction.”

According to the Environment News Service, the reports predict that almost two-thirds of the world’s 19 polar bear populations will be extinct by mid-century and that three more populations of polar bears will probably be extinct within 75 years.  Hamilton stated that “we now have official confirmation that the largest living land predator is going to go extinct in our lifetime.”  Apparently my grand-children will have to skip the zoo and head to a museum if they want to see a polar bear. 

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will report back in January on whether or not polar bears need to be protected under the Endangered Species Act.  While the prediction for polar bears seems dismal, the verdict is still out for our children and grandchildren.  The next president must have a plan to combat global warming for the sake of future generations who don’t yet have a voice to fight with on their own.