Which Hopeful Is Greenest?

Public hungry for action, aides conclude

(NEWSER) - Barack Obama will call for a clean energy bill in his Oval Office address on the oil spill tomorrow, as part of a renewed push for the once all-but-abandoned legislation. The White House believes that the spill has whetted the public’s appetite for energy reform, top aides tell Politico . One Democratic pollster predicts the bill will “give Democrats a potent weapon to wield against Republicans in the fall.” More»

Conservative business group now 'radioactive' in Washington

(NEWSER) - The Obama administration is deliberately freezing out a US Chamber of Commerce seemingly chilly to its entire agenda. White House officials have pointedly ignored the Chamber, speaking instead directly with the CEOs of its member companies. “We prefer the approach where the actual people who are on the front lines come and advise us,” Valerie Jarrett tells Politico, not-so-subtly implying that the Chamber is out of touch. More»

'Pathetic' Waxman-Markey at least puts a price on carbon: Friedman

(NEWSER) - Waxman-Markey is a "pathetic" and "appalling" bill that totally fails to respond to the urgency of climate change—and it should be passed by the Senate and signed into law straight away, writes Thomas Friedman. For the New York Times columnist, the flawed legislation has one great virtue: it finally puts a price on carbon emissions, and "will usher in a new mind-set among consumers, investors, farmers, innovators and entrepreneurs that in time will make a big difference." More»

To garner support, simplify plan and focus message: Friedman

(NEWSER) - Proponents of cap-and-trade, the climate policy Democrats are currently championing, argue that it “'hides the ball'—it doesn’t use the word 'tax'—even though it amounts to one," writes Thomas Friedman in the New York Times. There’s just one problem: “Opponents are not playing hide the ball anymore.” They’re calling cap-and-trade a tax and, worse, a Wall Street scheme. “So why not go for the real thing—a simple, transparent, economy-wide carbon tax?” More»

(NEWSER) - Hillary Clinton emphasized the environment today in China as she wrapped up a weeklong visit to Asia, the New York Times reports. “When we were industrializing and growing, we didn’t know any better,” Clinton said, praising recent advances in green energy and asking for more. “We hope you won’t make the same mistakes we made.” Some analysts think energy policy is the prime issue to unite the interests of the two countries. More»