Daily Briefing - 1/26/07

Happy Friday, all! And on this gloriously cold day (in DC, at least) we are met with pundits pontificating on energy policy (Friedman and Krauthammer), more news on the jarring UN report, and oh-so-much about those pesky '08 candidates. That, and an old lady beat up a mountain lion. On to the briefing!

MW

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Daily Briefing – 1/26/07
647 days until the NEXT election… and global warming is an integral part of our nation’s agenda!

Key Issues in the News
Global Warming
- Does this shirt come in “green?”
- Global warming to speed up but is it dangerous
- Emerging economies are under pressure to cut emissions
- White House says UN report shows humans to be a substantial factor
- In Huntsville, they see this as a huge political issue
- Canadians say environment and global warming are top issues
- Ban on An Inconvenient Truth sparks debate
Washington/Legislation/Politics/People/etc.
- Energy mandates fuel a rift between coal and environmentalists
- Vote no and they’ll cut your pay
- Well, at least he used real words this time
Potential ‘08ers…
- Hagel (the outsider ponders a run), Obama v. Clinton (Hollywood decides who to back), Clinton (wins over Liz Taylor), Obama (exciting the entertainers), Giuliani (a tough conservative to sell), Hunter (he’s the 2nd Republican officially in)
- Sharpton sizes up the candidates, Clinton again (trying to imagine a woman in the White House), Obama again (gets some advice from Harold Ford Jr.), Obama again again (confident he will appeal to the black community), Giuliani (gets support of former MA Gov.), Richardson (big spender?)
Other News from the Media
- Charles Krauthammer thinks energy independence will require three things: taxing gas, drilling in the arctic, and nuclear power
- Boston residents divided over solar-powered trash bins
- California bans dry cleaning chemical
- Thomas Friedman was unimpressed by the SOTU, hoping for grand energy and Iraq initiatives
…and the Blogosphere
- The Fix looks at the ’08 contenders
- The Caucus gives us the Democratic response you may not have heard (or understood)… the one in Spanish
- Is Ford Motor Company slowly dying?
- Over at DailyKos they laugh at the proposition of someone taking out Sen. Kerry
- MYDD looks at 2008 MI House Races
- We have brand new blog written by folks with a hair color I am especially partial to
- Grist:
o Saving salmon
o Apparently Sen. Inhofe is running a blog from the EPW site
o On nuclear
o Devouring countries for biofuels
Miscellaneous… or just plain weird
- Want to stop smoking? Bang your head against a wall. It just might work.
- Elderly woman fights off mountain lion with a pen, saves her husband
- A $155 million home in Montana
Quotes O’ the Day
“It is undesirable to believe a proposition when there is no ground whatsoever for supposing it is true.”~ Bertrand Russell, describing the deep convictions of Senator Inhofe

Daily Briefing - 1/25/07

Skepticism and hope from around the country and the world about the U.S. finally addressing global warming in a serious manner. One wonder what is taking so long, as a recent poll shows that 70% of Americans believe it to be a serious problem in need of addressing. Hey, at least the Super Bowl will be carbon-neutral. Maybe that will help me ignore that horrendous John Mellencamp song.

On to the briefing!

MW

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Daily Briefing – 1/25/07
648 days until the NEXT election… and global warming is an integral part of our nation’s agenda!

Key Issues in the News
Global Warming
- The Economist: Green America, Waking Up and Catching Up
- NYT editorial: Energy Rhetoric, and Reality
- U.N. climate panel to blame humans for global warming
o Raising the seas for 1,000 years
- Scientific American: Climate change fanning conflict and terrorism
o A hotter world promises to be an incubator for violence and danger
- New Statesman: No time to lose
- 70% of Americans think global warming is a problem that is causing serious impact
- Muslim News: Climate change is killing Africa and we are to blame
- Bush welcomed to the debate
- Global warming in 60 minutes. 1,000 volunteers spread the word
- Pelosi and Dingell set aside differences at DC Auto Show
- School bans Oscar nominated film
- A lesson in lexicography: Global warming or climate change?
Washington/Legislation/Politics/People/etc.
- Jim Webb, speaking his mind… something politicians are not too familiar with
- David Broder: Senate Firefighters, forging ahead to bipartisanship
- Now we can know every time Senator Tester meets with Jack Abramoff
- Biofuels research draws Bush to Delaware
o Also from Boston Globe
- Bush orders federal government to buy hybrid powered vehicles
- Those feisty freshmen aren’t worried about losing their majority
Potential ‘08ers…
- Obama (Appeal to blacks remains in question), Kerry (not running), Hunter (makes it official), Gore (Rolling Stone wants him to run), Obama again (calling for universal health care), Gingrich (keeping himself in the spotlight), Gingrich again (…and pushing for English to become our official language), Clinton (a busy morning), Pataki (leaves NH), Cox (I’m sorry, who?)
Other News from the Media
- Ethanol industry gets a boost
- Energy on a shoestring
- The Super Bowl will be carbon neutral, although some passes from Rex Grossman may be considered “pollution”
- Mercury found in all fish tested in the West
…and the Blogosphere
- TomPaine: Stop freedom-frying the planet
- The Fix: Winners and losers of the Kerry drop-out
- RedState on GOP and the press
- Pipeline: The state of our energy policy
- Crazy ideas at Huffington Post: Fighting poverty AND climate change
- Grist:
o British supermarkets going green
o Lifecycle Building Challenge
Miscellaneous… or just plain weird
- Oh our crazy, old Senators
- On gay sheep and bad publicity
Quotes O’ the Day
“It's so simple. Most people who couldn’t afford health insurance also are too poor to owe taxes. But...if you give them a deduction from their taxes they don’t owe, they can use the money they're not getting back from what they haven't given to buy the health care they can't afford.” ~Stephen Colbert

Daily Briefing - 1/24/07: State of the Union Edition

President Bush offered his assessment of the state of our union last night. Mixed reviews have rolled in, with typical responses from those with partisan allegiances. Public and non-partisan response, before seeing polls, seems to be somewhat positive if not skeptical.

In the conservation community, one line stuck out from the rest. At the end of the President's proposed 20/10 energy initiative, he mentioned how improving our energy policies we will address"global climate change." In my memory this is the first time President Bush has spoken a word about global warming without questioning the economic viability of solutions or simply its human-impacted existence. It is a big step for the President, but we cannot afford to spend time applauding rhetorical progression.

His statement implied that technology will save us. Technology will most likely be a guiding force in the fight against global warming, but it will take a serious committment from our leaders and citizens alike to prod innovation by fully changing our habits. Here's hoping Congress will take the President's words and turn them into formidable policy. You can prod them by going here to tell President Bush to seriously address global warming.

MW

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Daily Briefing – 1/24/07
649 days until the NEXT election… and global warming is an integral part of our nation’s agenda!

Key Issues in the News
Global Warming
- Gore celebrates two Oscar nominations for An Inconvenient Truth
- A key issue at Davos
- A taboo link, energy and taxes
- Are people like frogs?
- SF Chronicle: Cool on global warming
- Warming to global concerns together
- It’s here and its getting worse
- Bush joins the green parade
- California leaders watch Bush’s plans
- Trying to change their ways in San Diego
First 100
Washington/Legislation/Politics/People/etc.
- State of the Union: Bush pushes his Iraq plan, makes overtures to Democrats with domestic policy talk (full text)
o Also from NYT, SF Chronicle, Times Online (UK), Miami Herald, Chicago Tribune, Baltimore Sun, Boston Globe, WSJ, Kansas City Star, The Australian, The Politico
o Madame Speaker
o Bipartisan Bush? Howard Kurtz isn’t so sure.
o Knee-jerk Democrats
o Seeks vast mandatory increase in alternative fuels and greater vehicle efficiency
§ Critics see too little significant change in energy policy
o Editorials: NYT, Chicago Tribune, Houston Chronicle, Washington Post, The Australian
- Democratic Response: Webb offers blunt challenge, urging change in economy and Iraq
o Putting a fresh face front and center
Potential ‘08ers…
- Clinton (dynastic politics a liability), Obama and Giuliani (on the speech), Romney (conservatism questioned), Edwards (profits by playing outsider), Giuliani(failed 2000 campaign cast shadow), McCain (carving out Iraq position), Obama (he’s no Jack Kennedy, but…)
- Some contenders disagree
- Candidates offer their view
- Anything you can do, I can do…
Other News from the Media
- Robert Samuelson: Blindness on Biofuels
o May aid ethanol producers
- On snowbound plains, a grim fight to save cattle
- Ottawa vows $30 million to protect the Great Bear Rainforest
…and the Blogosphere
- Response from TomPaine and National Review
- The Fix looks at ‘08’s polling
- MYDD offers their state of the progressive movement
- DailyKos welcomes the media to the Jim Webb bandwagon
- Hotline: Winter of GOP discontent
- Grist:
o He mentions climate change… but alluded to the notion that technology will save us
§ On coal
o Hitting the tipping point on climate change?
o Paying the farm bill
Miscellaneous… or just plain weird
- Fox News and CNN spar over false Obama report
- AN “alternate version” of last night’s speech
- I can’t believe I missed this: The Daily Show SOTU Preview
- Rare sight of ancient shark
- Virgin birth of five Komodo dragons
- I guess this is one way to compete with Starbucks
Quotes O’ the Day
“America is on the verge of technological breakthroughs that will enable us to live our lives less dependent on oil. These technologies will help us become better stewards of the environment -- and they will help us to confront the serious challenge of global climate change.” ~ President Bush, State of the Union

“These Presidents took the right kind of action, for the benefit of the American people and for the health of our relations around the world. Tonight we are calling on this President to take similar action, in both areas. If he does, we will join him. If he does not, we will be showing him the way.”~ Senator Jim Webb, Democratic Response

Response to the State of the Union

National Wildlife Federation Welcomes President’s Thaw on Global Warming

Statement by Larry Schweiger

President & CEO, National Wildlife Federation

On the State of the Union Address

Washington, DC (Jan. 23) – “National Wildlife Federation welcomes President Bush’s shift on global warming, which was announced by the White House this afternoon in anticipation of the President’s State of the Union remarks tonight.

“As the global warming issue heats up across America, the President's position on global warming is beginning to thaw.

“The White House today for the first time said it would work to halt the growth of U.S. global warming pollution from oil, which stands in stark contrast to the president’s five-year old policy of allowing pollution levels to increase indefinitely. While the shift is a step in the right direction, the President’s policy proposals do not measure up to the urgency of the global warming threat to the future of America’s security, wildlife and economy.

“The president has dipped a few oars in the water, but he has not fully turned the ship to the right destination. We need to be cutting global warming pollution from gasoline and all other energy sources, and we need to start now with a mandatory program that guarantees results. We need to set goals to cut emissions from all sources, including automobiles, by 20 percent over the next decade. The president’s plan is neither comprehensive nor adequate.

“The White House announced today that the president tonight will proclaim ‘the goal of reducing U.S. gasoline usage by 20 percent in the next ten years.’ According to the White House announcement, ‘The president's plan will help confront climate change by stopping the projected growth of carbon dioxide emissions from cars, light trucks, and SUVs within 10 years.’ America’s dependency on oil currently accounts for about 40 percent of U.S. emissions or carbon dioxide, the pollutant most responsible for global warming. The Department of Energy recently projected that carbon dioxide emissions from oil will grow by 11 percent over the next 10 years and by 29 percent by the year 2030 without action.

“The new energy goals cast a puzzling shadow on the Bush Administration’s tactics just last week. President Bush opposed the just-passed House bill to shift billions of dollars of oil subsidies to alternative energy sources. We hope that the overwhelming bipartisan support for that bill, which passed 264 to 163, was a wakeup call for the president. A key question for the president now is whether he will reverse his position as that bill moves through the Senate.

“The new White House plan calls once again for opening up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for drilling, which will sacrifice one of America’s great unspoiled areas. President Bush isn’t listening to the millions of Americans who understand we cannot meet our energy needs by forever spoiling our wild places. Moving to new clean energy alternatives is the only long-term solution to the problem.

“We look forward to working on a bipartisan basis in the new Congress to advance effective global warming policies, and to work with the Bush Administration where we have common ground. Recent polls demonstrate that the vast majority of Americans believe global warming is a serious threat and they want our government to act. Leaders in Congress have already announced their intention to move much more aggressively on global warming with binding measures to broadly curb global warming pollution, and the National Wildlife Federation will be assisting those efforts as our top priority.”

The National Wildlife Federation is America’s conservation organization inspiring Americans to protect wildlife for our children’s future.

Immediate Release

January 23, 2007

Green Machines Tour

Fuel-efficient cars union-made in the good 'ol U.S. of A.? "Bah!" say the detractors. But alas, such anomalies may not be so anomalous. In fact they are becoming more common, and thanks to the good work of the Green Machines Tour, people across the upper-Midwest are learning all about the progress of American made green-autos, including a Saturn plug-in hybrid in the works.

Follow the tour here on their blog.

MW

Daily Briefing - 1/23/07

It snowed a foot in Arizona yesterday.

MW

First 100
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Daily Briefing – 1/23/07
650 days until the NEXT election… and global warming is an integral part of our nation’s agenda!

Key Issues in the News
Global Warming
- IPCC releases a “smoking gun” report
o Fox News: Already happening, getting worse
- Pressure on President heats up
- Internal rifts cloud Democrats’ opportunity on warming
o The Speaker vs. The Dean
- California: State starts work on plan to curb greenhouse gases
- Mayor Greg Nickels: Emissions reductions start local
- Oregon Statesman Journal: Another View
- Dubai to host global warming summit
- Al Gore goes to Idaho
- Grist: Texas, coal, and climate change
- On the Coulee region (WI) agenda
- It snowed a foot in Arizona
First 100
Washington/Legislation/Politics/People/etc.
- So how is the state of our union? We will find out tonight
o Mayor Fenty snubs Laura Bush, takes Pelosi’s invite
- The Politico is launched
- More college freshman now show interest in politics
Potential ‘08ers…
- Obama (questions about his grade school?), Clinton (going to New Hampshire), Clinton again (wooing black vote), McCain (bashing Cheney), Kerry (still pondering)
- The many stages the campaign in played on
Other News from the Media
- A radical step to preserve a species: Assisted Migration
- Springtime for Ethanol
- Gov. O’Malley (D-MD) backs clean car initiative
- The secret is in the rocks? Tapping of granite may unleash an unexpected energy source
- Stricken cargo ship leaking off the coast of England
…and the Blogosphere
- The Politico: Chairmen rumbling over new climate panel
- They Work For Us is born with the founder of DailyKos as one its heads
- Over at RedState they have a bunch of advice for the President for his SOTU
- Speaker Pelosi: Wildly popular?
- TomPaine: Creating Green-collar jobs
- Grist:
o Tree-planting and global warming
o Update on Bill McKibben’s Step It Up campaign
o Prius: Just as good as advertised
o Vinod Khosla’s forecast for 2007
Miscellaneous… or just plain weird
- Oscar nominations are announced. Here’s hoping my man Marty finally gets his due
- Do you believe in magic? An article on superstitions.
- Now will this be good for her “image”
- Umm, I’m not sure I’d be comfortable with this former Pastor as my tour guide
Quotes O’ the Day
“It’s like looking in a drawer full of diamonds.” ~ White House Press Secretary speaking of tonight’s State of the Union

“The United States is a nation of laws: badly written and randomly enforced.” - Frank Zappa

Daily Briefing - 1/22/07

So it seems that in the President's State of the Union tomorrow he will be unveiling a bold national strategy to fight global warming and take a serious step toward energy independence. We've heard the bit about energy independence before ("Our nation is addicted to oil."), but even the possibility of the President mentioning global warming without the qualifying "the science is still out there" mumbo-jumbo is jarring. It's about time the Administration caught up to the rest of the American people and the world in understanding the urgency of the situation.

Maybe he's finally catching on because 10 major CEOs are coming to lobby him and the House just gave the Oil industry a solid slap and all the American public did was applaud. Or maybe he's worried about the penguins and polar bears? Honestly, it doesn't matter. Whatever the reason for the progression in thought, we all look forward to positive and serious policy.

Elsewhere, Presidential candidates are popping up out of the woodwork like rats in a rotten log. Senator Clinton casually announced over the weekend, saying she's in it to win it. Did Yogi write that for you? Senator Brownback (R-KS) also announced this weekend to virtually no fanfare thanks to Mrs. Clinton. Governor Richardson (D-NM) with arguably the most stacked resume of all candidates also announced with an overly wonky video on his website. It's January of 2007 and roughly 47 people have announced their candidacy. Oy vey, this is going to be one hell of a ride.

On to the briefing...

MW

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Daily Briefing – 1/22/07
651 days until the NEXT election… and global warming is an integral part of our nation’s agenda!

Key Issues in the News
Global Warming
- Climate Policy’s Odd Man Out: The irrelevancy of the Bush Administration with regards to global warming
- New warnings on climate change
- Climate change: Cool enough for Sundance
- Bush goes green…?
o Unveiling a “bold new national strategy to confront global climate change”
- CEOs lobby Bush on warming
o Major businesses and environmental leaders unite to call for swift action
- Environmental policy may be thawing
- Seeing evidence, seeking leaders
- Will penguins become extinct?
- Report says Virginia could be in danger
- Four local WI events offer talks on global warming
First 100
Washington/Legislation/Politics/People/etc.
- Confidence in Bush leadership at al all-time low
- Bush expected to stress energy security and improved fuel economy
- If Clinton should win, who would replace her?
- Bernie Sanders: The Socialist Senator
- Sen. Hagel: Republican party must change
Potential ‘08ers…
- Clinton (She’s in… with a soft launch), Richardson (he’s in), Obama (aura reminiscent of JFK), Dodd (tells voters to give him a chance), Romney (may get support from top House GOP Member), Gingrich (’08 run would be last resort), Brownback (he’s in), McCain (should go ahead and announce), Giuliani (choices), Biden (his time in SC)
- Rush of entries gives ’08 an early intensity
- How Obama vs. Clinton shapes up
- Michael Barone questions the presidential picking process
Other News from the Media
- Damaged ship off Britain spills fuel and cargo
- You, too, can be an energy trader right in your heated home
- Insurance relief: Florida legislators trade risk for significant cuts
- Chavez to U.S.: “Go to hell, gringos!”
…and the Blogosphere
- The Caucus on Congress v. Bush
- Grist:
o Boxer and Bingaman take TXU (the guys trying to build those coal-fired power plants) to the mat
o LCV does Sundance
- MYDD analyzes the post-Obama announcement polls
- The folks over at RedState are unhappy about the first 100 hours
- The Hill: Realistic limits can fight global warming
Miscellaneous… or just plain weird
- Using God to keep you away from the fridge
- Unabomber wages legal battle to halt the sale of his personal papers
- Google turns a page on book downloads
- Dogs may promote good health
- Man falls 16 stories and lives
- Golden globes go green
Quotes O’ the Day
Laws are like sausages. It's better not to see them being made. - Otto von Bismarck