The candidates seem to have a ‘plan’ for everything. What might their climate change action plan include? Check out our seven benchmarks for a Presidential Leadership Agenda on climate change:
1. Legislation for economy-wide emissions reductions.
2. Aggressive R&D for low-carbon technology.
3. Federal planning for climate change impacts and response.
4. Picking the right team to carry the initiative.
5. Cooperation with international partners.
6. Reallocation of budget priorities.
7. Enable/encourage citizens to take conservation into their own hands.
Senator Hillary Clinton
How do Clinton's climate change quotes relate to our seven benchmarks?
Read the Clinton campaign's response to our Seven Benchmarks
1. Legislation for economy-wide emissions reductions:
“I have signed on to the most aggressive cap and trade global warming bill that we have in the congress. Senators Boxer and Sanders have put forward a plan for an economy wide cap and trade system that would aim at lowering greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, 80% below 1990 levels. We would try to get to the 1990 levels by 2020. I know that these are very aggressive targets…but we need to unleash the genius of the American economy.” Listen to the audio
- July 24, Portsmouth
55mpg Fuel Efficiency - "Of coarse we are going to have to tackle gas mileage. I want to help the auto companies make this transition. The way we do that is to help them with their non-auto manufacturing costs…so far as they are willing to put money back into efficiency and research and development.”" Listen to the audio
- November 7, Nashua
2. Aggressive R&D for low-carbon energy technology:
Strategic Energy Fund - "A 50 billion dollar fund, the model for this comes from things we have done in the past you know the Apollo program or the Manhattan program." Listen to the audio
- July 24, Portsmouth
3. Federal planning for climate change impacts and response:
"Clinton recognizes that global warming is already occurring, and that we need to begin to prepare for global warming impacts that are on the horizon. She would direct federal agencies to work with state and local governments to begin planning and preparing for impacts on coastal areas from more intense storms and changes in sea level; for impacts on water supply from increased droughts and reduced snowpack; and for impacts on wildlife and other natural resources from climate-induced changes." Read the transcript
- Provided to the Carbon Coalition by the Clinton campaign
4. Picking the right team to carry the initiative:
"I will create a National Energy Council modeled on the highly successful National Economic Council and the National Security Council. This new body will bring together disparate agencies throughout the federal government to ensure that they all have the same priorities for addressing global warming and are maximizing our effectiveness by coordinating and leveraging our efforts instead of duplicating. The National Energy Council will be headed by a National Energy Advisor who will report directly to the President, and will be charged with coordinating the implementation of my plan across the Executive Branch." Read the transcript
- Provided to the Carbon Coalition by the Clinton campaign
5. Cooperation with international partners:
"I want to create a group of the biggest greenhouse gas emitters in the world…and as president I have said that I will meet every three months with the leaders of theses countries that put out all of the greenhouse gas emissions. I will try to do what I think is necessary and ask what do we have to achieve? What more can we do? And then keep moving until we sign a new agreement, hopefully by 2010." Listen to the audio
- November 8, North Conway
"I will start by re-igniting our international involvement. We can not sit here in the United States and expect to deal with global warming if we don’t cooperate with other countries…India and China, they have to be part of this." Listen to the audio
July 24, Portsmouth
6. Reallocation of budget priorities: Strategic Energy Fund - “10 billion would come from making the oil companies pay royalties on their drilling in public lands…20 billion would come from removing the tax subsidies that have been increased under the Bush administration, remove the tax subsidies for the oil companies…the remaining 20 billion would come from a deal that I would offer the oil companies, and here is the deal…they can either invest the remaining 20 billion dollars themselves in alternative technology…or we will tax their windfall profits.” Listen to the audio
- July 24, Portsmouth
"$1.5 billion for public transportation - “Investing in energy efficient infrastructure is one of the cheapest, cleanest, fastest ways to cut energy usage and reduce greenhouse gas emissions." Listen to the audio
- August 8, Rochester
7. Enable/encourage citizens to take efficiency and conservation into their own hands:
“When I am president, every American will have the chance to invest in our clean energy future. The United States treasury will issue energy independence bonds dedicated to a $50 billion strategic energy funds dedicated to clean energy…I think that Americans should be able to invest in the fund too just like we did during World War II. During World War II, Americans purchased more than $33 billion of war bonds and we can appeal to that same sense of patriotism.” Watch the video
- November 7, Peterborough
“As President I would offer tax incentives for the installing technologies like solar panels and geothermal heaters in you homes. I propose a tax credit of up to $10,000 for purchasing a plug in hybrid that gets up to 100 mpg.” Watch the video
- November 7, Peterborough
"I have chosen to support a cap and trade system with an auction where the money would go to enhance our research efforts and provide support for middle income or poor people to be able to handle whatever the cost the energy transition will be." Watch the video
- July 24, Portsmouth
Green Building Fund- "A billion dollars a year that will be given in grants to states and localities to help make buildings more energy efficient, and by the way put 50,000 people to work." Listen to the audio
- July 24, Portsmouth
Other Global Warming Comments from New Hampshire
- Renewable Energy
"We have got to figure out how to incentivize that (renewable energy, like solar). One of the problems we face is the resistance of using the tax structure to change behavior because using the tax structure you will move people away from fossil fuels." Listen to the audio
- July 24, Portsmouth
Ethanol-"We can’t just sit there and think that we can plant enough corn for corn ethanol, that’s not a productive way to do it. We have to do much more research with cellulosic to figure out ways to develop ethanol the way the Brazilians did with sugar we should do with farm waste, with wood, in old paper mills in places like Berlin." Listen to the audio
- March 13, Manchester
"People are starting to raise legitimate concerns about the impact of corn based ethanol on livestock prices, on food prices, the effects on land." Listen to the audio
- July 24, Portsmouth
- Nuclear
"I think that nuclear power is very expensive and we still don’t know what to do with the waste, I kind of consider myself an agnostic in this regard. I am not for it and I am not 100% against it because there is a role for it if we can figure out how to protect ourselves from the consequences, and I am not sure we can…I think it’s important to continue research." Listen to the audio
- July 24, Portsmouth
Clinton Changed her Position on Nuclear since July 24- "Because of significant unresolved concerns about the cost of producing nuclear power, the safety of operating plants, waste disposal, and nuclear proliferation. Hillary opposes new subsidies for nuclear power, but believes that we need to take additional steps to deal with the problems facing nuclear power." Read the transcript
- Quote from Clinton's website
Nothing in Promises, Commitments & Priorities: Seeking a Presidential Leadership Agenda is meant to imply an endorsement of any candidate or political party.
