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

John McCain won the GOP primary in South Carolina last night by holding off Mike Huckabee by just three percentage points.  Since John McCain and Mike Huckabee both support cap and trade, this means 66% of the votes cast in the South Carolina Republican Primary were cast for the two candidates who favor a cap on carbon emissions to combat climate change.

TPC had an exciting three days in South Carolina leading up to the the all important primary night.  Apparently the New Hampshire winter weather followed us down to South Carolina as the Clemson University campus was blanketed by a layer of wet snow for the first time in years.

The slushy roads did not scare Mike Huckabee and his traveling circus from dazzling the upcountry crowds with action superstar Chuck Norris, pro-wrestler Ric ‘the Nature Boy’ Flair, and the continual jamming of ‘Sweet Home Alabama’ with local South Carolinian bands.

Huckabee mentioned energy independence at each stop stating that we need “new sources of energy that are environmentally friendly.” Even though Huckabee may not have thought that a focus on climate change and clean energy would win him South Carolina, ‘Make Climate Change a Priority’ signs outnumbered ‘I Like Mike’ signs at many of his events as seen by the media coverage.

McCain changed the tone on the stump since New Hampshire and did not mention climate change for two days unless prompted by a question. This may have been because McCain was preoccupied defending himself from a confederate flag toting man who slung accusations at McCain and Senior Senator Lindsay Graham who accompanied McCain each step of the way.

Things changed at a town hall in Sumter when McCain acknowledged and thanked all of those in the crowd wearing climate change stickers and spoke for a few minutes about the importance of taking climate action.

After taking serious heat from Romney about being outspoken on climate change, McCain seemed hesitant at first to acknowledge the ‘green Republicans’ in his crowds, but his passion for the issue overcame political calculation. One of McCain’s favorite phrases seems applicable here: “I would much rather win a war, than lose an election.”