Democrat Platform Touts Clean Energy Success while Republican Platform Emphasizes Fossil Fuels

The Democratic Platform released this week underscores the Administration's 'All of the Above' energy strategy.  Not surprisingly, the platform's energy agenda skews toward on clean energy pointing that President Obama has a goal of generating 80% of our energy from clean sources by 2035.  The agenda noted that Administration investments in clean energy doubled the electricity we get from wind and solar.   There was a shout out to Obama Administration's standards for emissions and fuel efficiency which has lowered our dependence on foreign oil with a side emphasis on clean energy jobs.  The energy platform ended with this:  "Building a clean energy future means that new exploration and production needs to be approached safely and responsibly. Democrats are committed to balancing environmental protection with development, and that means preserving sensitive public lands from exploration, like the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Pacific West Coast, Gulf of Maine, and other irreplaceable national landscapes".

Mitt Romney's Acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention emphasized greater production of fossil fuels to create jobs and build our economy.  But he had one line about energy which has reverberated over the last few days, “President Obama promised to slow the rise of the oceans and to heal the planet. My promise is to help you and your family."  In that one line, Romney hinted at the President being out-of-touch on real issues such as a family budget.  Frankly, it was a good line.  Many families today are struggling with incomes substantially lower than what they earned previously and those are the lucky ones - other families are coping with the long term travails of unemployment.  The environment takes a back seat to a mortgage, children's school clothes, groceries and their children's extracurricular school and athletic fees.   It's the Maslow's hierarchy of needs pure and simple - basic needs come way before broader goals for the planet. Unfortunately, sometimes well educated and well intentioned folk in Washington, DC don't quite grasp the economic realities of mainstream America.  It is not fair to draw a line between environmental stewardship and a family budget as Mitt Romney did, yet I don't believe well-educated environmentalists fully appreciate our nation's economic hardship.