Obama announced additional details for his plan to fight global warming today. The plan would set two crucial deadlines:
By 2030, we would:
(1) take dramatic steps to improve energy efficiency -- aiming for a 50% improvement by 2030 through steps like:
- Phasing out the incandescent light bulb by 2014 -- "a measure that Obama estimates would save consumers $6 billion a year on their electric bills."
- Having all federal government buildings carbon neutral by 2025
- Require all new construction to be carbon neutral by 2030
(2) reduce "our dependence on foreign oil and reducing oil consumption overall by at least 35 percent, or 10 million barrels of oil."
By 2050, we would have reduced global warming emissions by 80% below 1990 levels through "an economy-wide cap-and-trade program." (The system would also mandate a return to 1990 levels by 2020.)
Obama sets a new standard in auctioning credits for carbon emissions:
For better or for worse, a consensus has formed among the Democratic front-runners around the idea of a market-based cap-and-trade system. There are, however, crucial differences in how the system would be implemented. One idea would be to actually auction off the pollution credits, requiring businesses to actually pay for the right to pollute.
According to the AP, Hillary Clinton has said "she is intrigued by the carbon auction system but has stopped short of endorsing it."
John Edwards "would auction off a portion of the pollution permits and invest the proceeds on renewable energy technology and new jobs, while other permits would be sold or given away."
Obama is the first candidate to set a new standard of requiring that 100% of pollution credits be auctioned. The proceeds of that auction --- up to $150 billion over ten years --- would be used to "develop and deploy climate friendly energy supplies, protect our existing manufacturing base and create millions of new jobs."
David Roberts over at Grist.org had this response:
100% auction of cap-and-trade credits. This is a home run, a real act of standard-setting boldness (the kind that Obama always promises but rarely delivers). The green community should immediately use it to push Clinton and Edwards into making the same commitment, insuring that it's the new baseline for any cap-and-trade program.
[W]ith his promise to auction 100% of cap-and-trade credits, Obama has put himself out ahead of all the other frontrunners. He deserves the praise he'll get for it.
Why should businesses be required to pay for the right to pollute?
It's simple, Obama said today:
No business will be allowed to emit any greenhouse gases for free. Businesses don't own the sky, the public does, and if we want them to stop polluting it, we have to put a price on all pollution.
The Obama plan brims with other mandates:
-- By 2025, 25% of electricity to be generated "from clean, sustainable energy sources, like solar, wind and geothermal"
-- By 2013, 7.5% of federal government electricity should be from renewable sources, and 30% by 2020:
This effort will help create a reliable demand for renewable energy production, thereby incentivizing the private sector to increase its investment in renewable energy production.
Presidential candidates make promises every four years
Probably one of the most interesting things about the announcement in Portsmouth, NH, is that the campaign showed a video of footage of every American president since Nixon promising to reduce emissions.
And Obama started off his speech emphasizing that implementing this plan would require changing the way Washington works:
The truth is, our energy problem has become an energy crisis because no matter how well-intentioned the promise - no matter how bold the proposal - they all fall victim to the same Washington politics that has only become more divided and dishonest; more timid and calculating; more beholden to the powerful interests that have the biggest stake in the status quo."
There are some in this race who actually make the argument that the more time you spend immersed in the broken politics of Washington, the more likely you are to change it. I always find this a little amusing. I know that change makes for good campaign rhetoric, but when these same people had the chance to actually make it happen, they didn't lead. When they had the chance to stand up and require automakers to raise their fuel standards, they refused. When they had multiple chances to reduce our dependence on foreign oil by investing in renewable fuels that we can literally grow right here in America, they said no.
Now, some of these policies are difficult politically. They aren't easy. But being President of the United States isn't about doing what's easy. It's about doing what's hard. It's about doing what's right. Leadership isn't about telling people what they want to hear - it's about telling them what they need to hear.
All in all, it's an audacious plan. Associated Press coverage here. Full pdf of plan here.
Remember, Barack Obama also received the highest lifetime rating (96) from the League of Conservation Voters of any presidential candidate.
Cross-posted at MyDD.