Time to fulfill Obama's next promise: climate change
The last few months of the '08 Presidential campaign were dominated by the economy. Aside from that, there were three issues Barack Obama campaigned on.
Ending the Iraq War. Health Care. Climate Change.
That's the platform he emphasized throughout the election and it's the mandate voters gave him on election day.
His plan for getting out of Iraq isn't happening as quickly as some would like, but he committed to withdrawal. The health care bill isn't what many of his supporters want it to be, but major reform became law this week. The stimulus jobs bill did more to promote clean energy than any law in American history, but it still left the job undone.
Obama said in his announcement speech:
We can turn this crisis of global warming into a moment of opportunity for innovation, and job creation, and an incentive for businesses that will serve as a model for the world. Let's be the generation that makes future generations proud of what we did here.
He was the first Presidential candidate to make climate change a major theme of his campaign and people responded. Especially young people, who became a key part of his victory when they supported him by unbelievable margins.
I often hear Democrats complain that young people don't vote and they probably won't show up for the 2010 Congressional election. But, it's arrogant and foolish to expect young people to vote in large numbers when their top concerns are ignored. Health care is a great victory but it will also be a massive generational subsidy to aging boomers, largely financed by Gens X and Y. It isn't the top issue for most young people.
A student loan forgiveness program would be the easiest way to win over voters under 40, but after that it's the environment. Current college students are particularly aware that they'll be the ones to suffer the consequences of inaction.
Most sitting members of Congress won't live long enough to see the worst climate change disasters. The college students they ignore will be.
I don't expect the corporate media to talk about climate change as the next top priority. First, because they're either partially owned by fossil fuel interests (GE-NBC) and/or depend on their advertising dollars.
Second, how many TV news pundits and columnists are under 35? The young reporters out there aren't making editorial decisions about coverage or getting invited to the talking head shows. The generational divide on this issue means much of the national press won't take climate change legislation seriously.
If Congress and the traditional press deal dismissively with clean energy legislation it will only cement their institutional irrelevance to young voters.
A major clean energy and green jobs bill has to be the next major agenda item to pass. It's necessary if Congressional Democrats want the Obama coalition to show up and vote in 2010. It's needed to create green jobs. It's the change Obama's strongest supporters believe in.
Most importantly, there are deadly consequences if we continue to delay. A theoretical right to health care won't help if the nearest hospitals have been destroyed by a catastrophic flood, tornado or hurricane.