If, as expected, President Bush makes an announcement in tonight’s State of the Union pushing for action on climate change, it’s likely that he’ll have John McCain’s support.
That’s if a letter I recently got in the mail is to be believed. In a plea for donations, Environmental Defense, a non-profit that advocates market-based solutions to environmental problems, included a letter from McCain that begins:
I’ll give it to you straight:
We have a growing crisis on our hands… one that seldom gets the attention it deserves.
I’m speaking about global warming.
McCain explains that if global warming is “left unchecked, we can expect glaciers and polar ice caps to melt, severe storms to become more frequent, prolonged droughts to devastate agricultural lands, sea levels to rise and entire ecosystems to be thrown out of balance.” It’s almost like he’s reading Mother Jones!
For a summary of the McCain-Lieberman Climate Stewardship and Innovation Act, and a run-down of how it compares to competing bills in the Senate, see here.
PS – If McCain, king of the rightward shift, is embracing the idea of action on global warming, I think we can come close to saying the beast of global warming resistance has been slayed. There’s more to be done of course, but with crazy old James Inhofe out as chairman of the Environment and Public Works Committee, presidential contender McCain positioning himself the way he is, Democrats pushing for action, and big business pressuring the president to act…. I’m just asking, if Bush comes out strong in favor of fighting climate change tonight, is it time to say, “Relax, celebrate victory”?
