Climate Change

Kerry's Confident Climate Change Bill Momentum Is Heating Up

Christina Bellantoni | March 3, 2010, 11:22AM

Sen. John Kerry (D-MA), Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) and Sen. Lindsay Graham (R-SC)

Sen. John Kerry today is meeting with the Senate committee chairmen to outline the bipartisan climate change legislation that is taking shape privately on Capitol Hill.

For months Kerry has been huddling with Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) with backing from the White House and President Obama's Green Cabinet to come up with a bill that passes political muster. Political aides and Kerry declined to give a firm timeline or say whether something could actually get done in midterm election year, but Kerry told reporters Tuesday he feels "very positive" that the details his bipartisan trio is working through could become a specific proposal soon.

"I feel much more confident that we, all the three of us, and others who are engaged in this, have a clear sense of direction. What we're doing now is working through the details," Kerry said. "It's a puzzle, you have to fit all the pieces together."

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Climate Change

Climate Scramble In Copenhagen

Christina Bellantoni | December 18, 2009, 10:42AM

President Barack Obama and the Earth

President Obama and his Green Cabinet are scrambling to salvage a possible deal during climate talks in Copenhagen, with the president hosting private meetings with world leaders and multiple reports of tension between delegates.

Press Secretary Robert Gibbs says Obama is huddling for the second time with world leaders he spoke with earlier, and notes Yu Qingtai, Special Representative on Climate Change Negotiations of Ministry of Foreign Affairs, is representing China at the meeting.

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Climate Change

Obama Huddling With China To Salvage Climate Deal

Christina Bellantoni | December 18, 2009, 8:39AM

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and President Barack Obama

The climate change summit in Copenhagen is nearing its conclusion and reports from the scene suggest the talks are hanging in the balance.

Upon arrival instead of his planned schedule, Obama joined 18 world leaders in hopes of salvaging a deal. After speaking to about 8,000 United Nations delegates, Obama held a private meeting with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao for nearly an hour.

Obama and Wen asked negotiators to get together one-on-one "to see if an agreement can be reached," a White House official told reporters.

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Joe Lieberman

Lieberman Riling Dems On Health Care But Is Major Player On Climate, Same-Sex Benefits

Christina Bellantoni | December 15, 2009, 10:11AM

Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT)

Sen. Joe Lieberman might be persona-non-grata in the health care negotiations, but he's juggling several large initiatives the Obama administration wants to see move forward.

As Democrats grow increasingly infuriated with Lieberman (I-CT) as he throws a wrench into the health care bill, the White House and Senate leadership can't afford to kick sand in his face.

TPMDC checked in on Capitol Hill, and learned that White House officials are regularly meeting with him on climate change (even as White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs says he's not sure if aides are talking to him about health care).

Also sizzling on the stove are major pieces of legislation pending in the Homeland Security Committee, which Lieberman chairs.

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Green Cabinet

Dear Obama: Biden Pens Green Memo To President

Christina Bellantoni | December 14, 2009, 11:59PM

The White House has released a "progress report" on clean energy efforts as detailed in a memo from Vice President Joe Biden to President Obama on the eve of Obama's trip to Copenhagen.

"I'm pleased to report that the administration is laying the foundation for a clean energy economy that will create a new generation of jobs, reduce dependence on oil and enhance national security," Biden writes.

Read the memo, titled Progress Report: The Transformation to A Clean Energy Economy here.

White House climate czar Carol Browner said the administration has shown a commitment to clean energy in a way that has sparked investment from the private sector.

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Climate Change

Change Of Plans: Obama Going to Copenhagen At End Of Climate Talks

Christina Bellantoni | December 4, 2009, 4:54PM

President Barack Obama and the Earth

President Obama was all set to go to Copenhagen for the global climate change talks next week, but the White House has announced a change of plans.

Environmental experts and other nations questioned the effectiveness of the president's decision to attend the conference at the beginning instead of at the end when other world leaders were gathered there.

One reason for the shift is that Obama intended to get things kicked off. Before the conference has even started China and India announced major carbon reduction plans for the first time ever, and Europe and Australia have settled on a $10 billion per year to help developing countries meet whatever is established as the new framework.

The White House says Obama always wanted to attend the talks when his presence would be most meaningful, and given the early positive signs, it made sense for him to delay the trip.

White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs just released a statement saying that Obama will do just that.

"Based on his conversations with other leaders and the progress that has already been made to give momentum to negotiations, the President believes that continued US leadership can be most productive through his participation at the end of the Copenhagen conference on December 18th rather than on December 9th," Gibbs said.

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Copenhagen

Al Gore Also Going To Copenhagen

Christina Bellantoni | November 25, 2009, 12:48PM

Fmr. Vice President Al Gore

Vice President Al Gore will travel to Copenhagen next month for the climate change talks.

We reported earlier that President Obama will be going with the aim of giving "momentum" to the U.S. team's negotiations.

TPMDC has learned that Gore, who won a Nobel Peace Prize in 2007 for his work on global warming, also is making the trip.

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Climate Change

WH Officials Say Decision On Copenhagen Attendance Coming Soon

Christina Bellantoni | November 23, 2009, 2:13PM

Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), the planet Earth, and President Barack Obama

The White House will announce soon whether President Obama will attend the climate change meetings in Copenhagen, a long anticipated decision that will signal how much effort and political capital the United States wants to spend on promising to curb carbon emissions.

As world leaders and climate experts have criticized a lack of action in Washington in the leadup to the talks, the White House is trumpeting more action in the 10 months since Obama took office than the world saw under President George W. Bush.

When questioned about the delay, White House officials pushed back.

"We go into Copenhagen with a very, very strong hand - if we have an outline that's helpful, but we go in with 10 months of unprecedented leadership on these issues," a senior administration official told reporters in a briefing today.

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Climate Change

Major Climate Hearings Start Today On Capitol Hill As Administration Makes 'Green' Announcements

Christina Bellantoni | October 27, 2009, 9:42AM

Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), the planet Earth

With a clearer picture on health care, the Obama administration and Congress today are pivoting toward climate change legislation.

The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee began hearings this hour on Chairman Barbara Boxer's bill, with President Obama's Green Cabinet expected to testify.

Obama, meanwhile, is at a Florida solar power plant this morning announcing stimulus funds for a major investment in smart grid technology. An Obama aide tells TPMDC the president will talk about building the infrastructure for a clean energy economy.

Vice President Biden will be making an announcement at a General Motors plant in Delaware that is reopening to make hybrid vehicles.

With just over a month before climate change negotiations begin in Copenhagen, environmental advocacy groups have been pressuring the White House and Congress to take action so world leaders have a framework to build upon.

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