Well, that's what we're seeing today with Congressman Barton's so-called energy plan. This "alternative" proposal is a distraction from the hard work and effort that Chairmen Waxman and Markey have put into the comprehensive clean energy and climate legislation (the American Clean Energy and Security Act) that is now moving ahead in the Energy and Commerce Committee.
Yesterday, President Obama praised Waxman's leadership and the "extraordinary progress" in moving ahead with a plan that will provide clean energy, create jobs and cut carbon pollution. NRDC's president, Frances Beinecke, also recognized the effort it took to bring together diverse voices and find a solid approach to energy and climate that will get America moving again.
According to most reports, this legsliation is now on track to be passed through the Committee by Memorial Day and will taken up by the House soon after.
As I said in a press release earlier today:
"The Barton plan reflects old, worn-out thinking that will do nothing to cut the pollution that causes global warming or reduce our dangerous dependence on oil. For months, Chairmen Waxman and Markey have conducted an open dialogue, giving members from Virginia to Ohio a chance to weigh-in on the current legislation. It is this plan, not the Barton alternative, that will create jobs and protect the planet."
The Barton plan reflects the status quo thinking that got America into this mess. But we need real solutions to make America a leader for the 21st century. We need true leadership for America, not more party crashers.
]]>Here's a re-cap of some of this week's highlights and some of the most memorable words that we heard and read:
For Earth Day, President Obama highlighted the economic opportunities around clean energy and global warming solutions.
President Obama said: "The choice we face is not between saving our environment and saving our economy. The choice we face is between prosperity and decline. We can remain the world's leading importer of oil, or we can become the world's leading exporter of clean energy."
In Roll Call, Representative Sherrod Brown wrote a column, including the line: "Inaction is not an option" (See NRDC's Climate Director, Dan Lashof's blog on it. )
He went on to say: "If we care about the world in which we live and the generations that will follow us, then we must no longer dismiss the lethal risks global warming poses to our planet. We must craft an aggressive strategy to combat global warming, and we must do it now."
Business leaders, part of the group Environmental Entrepreneurs (www.E2.org) came to Washington to push the case for clean energy as an economic engine.
The CEO of SynGest and E2 member Jack Oswald was quoted in the Washington Post , saying, "What's going to give us the ability to expand as rapidly as possible is carbon legislation."
On the flip side, Politico ran a story that examined the opposition's approach to global warming, calling it 'schizophrenic.'
The title says it all: "GOP grapples with climate confusion."
And here's another key line: "Outside the Capitol, business groups - a key Republican constituency - are fractured in their opposition to climate change legislation."
Finally, Senator John Warner (VA- retired) testified to Congress about the importance of climate change from a national security perspective.
As he put it: "Global climate change has the potential, if left unchecked, of adding missions to the already heavy burdens of our military and other elements of our nation's overall national security."
So, what are we to think about all of these words? To me, it says that, after a long delay, Washington is moving again on clean energy and global warming. More and more business leaders, economists, and even politicians are recognizing that the right environmental decisions are the right economic ones.
To close it out, here are NRDC's President Frances Beinecke words from Earth Day: "With a president who shares our environmental priorities, a Congress poised to take action, and business leaders increasingly aware of the opportunity presented by a clean energy economy -- we have the tools to repower America."
(Thanks to Eric Young who contributed to this entry.)
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