Energy and Climate Take Center State in Campaign

It's official, energy is now at the very heart of the 2008 Presidential election. While it is unfortunate that it took $4 gas prices, America, all the way to oilman T. Boone Pickens (except, of course, for President Bush), has woken up to a new energy reality. The RNC has responded with "balance," a $3 million ad buy coming on the heels of an ad series from the McCain campaign touting his energy security credentials.

Balance: 

McCain has chosen to make energy security his central issue in this year's campaign. And, while his policies do not match his rhetoric - drilling offshore and suspending the gas tax would do nothing "now" to lower energy prices and would ultimately exacerbate climate change - he has seized what is now the number one issue of the campaign and one of the only issues he has a shot on, running ads in battleground states and forcing Obama to respond. The ad is especially ironic as it features the Republican Party criticizing the Democratic candidate for President for being "just the party line" in a year in which Democrats have a 10 to 15 point party ID advantage.

Obama's response, "New Energy," debunks the RNC/McCain promise of action "now," announces the Obama plan, and actually has some particulars that would make a difference in both energy prices and climate change:


The fact that energy and climate change are at the center of this election, with a sitting President who does not even acknowledge any real need to act on climate change, represents a fundamental shift away from Bush politics and the Bush era. The candidate who wins this election will be the one who shows the American people they best understand it.

Tomorrow morning at 8a.m. in room 325 of the Russell Senate Office Building, NDN will host Senate Energy and Natural Resources Chairman Jeff Bingaman for an address on climate change. This is the first in a series of events this month from the NDN Green Project's effort to understand this new energy and economic era. For more information on this event and to RSVP, click here.