McCain and Obama Spar on Energy, Environment During 2nd Presidential Debate

During the second Presidential debate of 2008, candidates Barack Obama and John McCain answered questions relating to the environment and how they believe we should move forward on energy concerns.  McCain, while pointing out that he disagreed with Bush’s record on the environment, offered nuclear power as a solution – never mentioning renewables like solar and wind.  Obama stated that we can help the American economy grow with alternative energy innovation, pointing out that McCain has voted against alternative energy 23 times.

Check out the video:

“Senator McCain talks a lot about drilling, and that’s important. But we have three percent of the world’s oil reserves and we use twenty-five percent of the world’s oil.  So what that means is that we can’t simply drill our way out of the problem.  And we’re not going to be able to deal with the climate crisis if our only solution is to use more fossil fuels that create global warming.  We’re going to have to come up with alternatives and that means that the United States government is working with the private sector to fund the kind of innovation that we can then export to countries like China that also need energy and are setting up one coal-fired power plant a week.”

Once again, while McCain’s solution is to look back to the 20th century for help with solving a 21st century problem, Obama is looking forward toward green tech as a way to solve our energy crisis, boost the economy, battle climate change and help ensure that countries like China don’t undo our efforts with their ever-increasing reliance on dirty fossil fuels.  Whose plan sounds better to you?

Link [YouTube]

9 Reasons a John McCain Presidency Would be a Disaster for the Environment

Republican presidential nominee John McCain may be doing all he can to present himself as a green candidate, but don’t believe the hype. McCain’s efforts to brand himself as a steward of the environment simply don’t mesh with the man’s own life, viewpoints and voting history, and offering a line of eco-friendly merchandise isn’t going to change that.

A McCain presidency would be an utter disaster for the environment, especially in terms of the fight against global warming and the emerging renewable energy industry. If you care about any of these things, here are 9 reasons that should keep you from voting for McCain in November.

9. He’s shown a fundamental lack of understanding about important concepts related to the environment, from energy to conservation. McCain’s campaign ridiculed Barack Obama when the Democratic presidential nominee stated that if everyone kept their vehicles properly maintained, including keeping tires properly inflated, we could save as much energy as offshore drilling would produce. However, Obama was right.

Despite claiming that he’s a conservationist in the vein of Theodore Roosevelt, McCain has shown a staggering lack of understanding about conservation issues. In his haste to display a ‘tough stance’ on earmarks, McCain derided efforts to fund a study on grizzly bear populations in Montana as an example of congressional excess. He oversimplified and mischaracterized the bill as an ‘expensive bear paternity test’ that would cost $3 million dollars to “study the DNA of bears in Montana”. The study, in fact, was needed to protect these endangered animals by surveying their populations. This is far from the only example of McCain’s failure to live up to his carefully crafted ‘environmentalist’ image – he has earned a lifetime League of Conservation Voters score of just 24 out of 100, including a 2007 score of 0.

McCain is also completely out of touch with technology. At a town hall meeting in Portsmouth, New Hampshire on December 6th of last year, McCain stated that “the truly green technologies don’t work”, claiming that “most every expert that I know says that if you maximize [renewables] in every possible way,” the contribution they would make is “very small.” It shows how narrow McCain’s circle of experts really is – even the Bush administration admits that we could get most of our electricity growth over the next couple of decades from wind power alone.

Note also that he said “given the present state of technology”. That brings us to…

8. He’s not going to help green energy get off the ground – he doesn’t believe that solar, wind and other renewables need government assistance. According to him, “I’m not one who believes that we need to subsidize things. The wind industry is doing fine, the solar industry is doing fine.” And yet, his energy plan includes subsidies for getting nuclear power off the ground.

Considering that solar and wind power are cleaner, safer sources of renewable energy, it would make sense to ensure that businesses can afford to move forward with these technologies. Subsidies for wind and solar are critical for projects like the Solana Generating Station, a $1 billion, 280-megawatt plant slated for construction near Gila Bend in Arizona. McCain has instead placed the priority on offshore drilling and nuclear power.

7. He’ll cave to pressure from more conservative Republicans. In the course of his campaign, McCain has moved further and further away from his original, greener, more left-leaning stances. He was once a staunch opponent of offshore drilling, but that stance slowly died an awkward death, finally succumbing completely when running mate Sarah Palin roused a chorus of “drill, baby, drill” at the GOP national convention.

Indeed, the GOP’s death grip on oil as America’s main source of energy – and their many financial and personal ties to the industry – would hardly give McCain the opportunity to accomplish anything substantial in the environmental arena. Despite the fact that he’s often held views on green issues that are unpopular with his fellow Republicans, he has taken his party’s decidedly pro-corporation, anti-environment stance on plenty of others. Whether this is due to pressure from fellow lawmakers, lobbyists or other influences is impossible to tell – McCain’s record on environmental issues is wildly erratic with no clear rhyme or reason (see #2).

As The New Republic mused back in March, “However uneven his record, it would be a real tragedy if the GOP changed McCain’s position on the environment, rather than the other way around.” Given his softening on environmental issues during the course of his campaign, it’s looking more and more likely that that’s exactly what would happen if he became President.

6. McCain’s own life shows how much personal dedication he really has to the environment. It’s the argument that conservatives have tried to use against Al Gore for years, only in this instance, it’s true. John McCain and his wife, Cindy, own 13 vehicles and somewhere between 7-12 homes, depending on who you ask. When asked by a reporter how many homes he owns, McCain wasn’t even able to provide an answer.

Climate Progress estimates that the carbon footprint of McCain’s homes to be around 150 million tons, or about 10 times that of the average American. Mind you, this isn’t counting the trips he makes back and forth between those homes on his wife’s private jet. And, somehow we doubt that McCain is powering his homes with 100% renewable energy, like Al Gore does (and for the record, Obama owns just one home and one car.)

5. He wants to build 45 new nuclear power plants by 2030. McCain claims on his website that “nuclear power is a proven, zero-emission source of energy, and it is time we recommit to advancing our use of nuclear power.” The fact is, nuclear power is unsafe and expensive – and there are better alternatives out there. A single nuclear reactor costs between $6-$8 billion to build, and shipping hazardous materials during the construction process would be extremely dangerous. Mining the uranium required to power the plants would be an environmental disaster. And then there’s the issue of disposing of nuclear waste.

We’re not wild about the fact that Obama backs nuclear power, either, but here’s an important distinction between him and McCain: Obama is cautiously supportive of nuclear energy as a small part of a comprehensive clean energy overhaul, if and only if all safety issues are addressed. Obama has said, “I have not ruled out nuclear… but only [would support it] so far as it is clean and safe.”

McCain’s stubborn insistence that nuclear power must be a major player in the clean energy of the future again affirms the fact that he’s disconnected from modern technology. He’s clinging to the energy sources of the 20th century, not looking toward the cleaner, greener energy tech of the 21st century and beyond.

4. He supports offshore drilling and falsely claims that it’s an important part of America’s short-term energy solution. In fact, offshore drilling is now a key strategy in his energy plan. McCain’s campaign has consistently sought to mislead the public about a tie between current gas prices and offshore drilling, as if offshore drilling is some magical answer. They’ve gone so far as to blame Obama for high gas prices in an attack ad, which states that “some in Washington are saying no to drilling in America… no to independence from foreign oil. Who can you thank for rising prices at the pump?” Cut to a photo of Obama. Then, “One man knows that we must now drill more in America and rescue our family budgets.”

It’s just plain not true. FactCheck.org notes of the ad, “The federal government’s estimate is that if the moratorium on offshore drilling were lifted today, it would be 2030 before we’d see a noticeable effect on supply and prices. For the same reason, it’s simply not true that drilling more now will ‘rescue our family budgets.’” But that’s exactly what McCain’s campaign is drilling into the minds of the American public – just so they’ll vote for him. We’ve got to wean ourselves off oil, period – not simply squeeze every drop we can out of America at the expense of the environment.

At least McCain doesn’t want to drill in the Alaska National Wildlife Refuge, right? Oh, wait – Palin does. And she’s Alaska’s governor. Umm…

3. He has given in to lobbying from the dirty energy industry time and time again. McCain has taken at least $1,069,854 from the oil & gas industry, and at least 22 top McCain advisors and fundraisers have lobbied for Big Oil at one time or another. McCain has also personally advocated for huge tax breaks for oil companies, and has voted against a windfall profit tax on oil companies multiple times. In fact, McCain has a long record of being very cozy with lobbyists. How can we trust this so-called ‘maverick’ to keep our interests in mind, and not those of the corporations he’s in bed with?

2. His record shows that he’s all talk and no action. McCain has missed dozens of important votes on environmental issues, and when he did show up, he often voted against measures that would support renewable energy. In fact, his environmental record in the Senate is aligned with that of James “global warming is a hoax” Inhofe.

McCain claims to have a long history of supporting alternative energy, but his record shows otherwise. He has missed key votes on issues like extending renewable energy tax credits, and voted against renewables at least eight times in the last decade, including the Energy Policy Act of 2005, which was the biggest congressional effort to push alternative energy in more than a decade. Even Senator Inhofe voted for it.

He has also voted to weaken requirements for energy-efficiency in appliances, voted to let coal states bypass the Clean Water Act, voted against increased EPA funding to clean up Superfund toxic-waste sites and also against requiring polluters to pay for the cleanup of Superfund sites. All in all, he has voted against clean energy and the environment (or said he would have, for those votes he missed) more than 50 times since the early 1990s. So much for being a ‘green candidate’.

1. Two words: Sarah Palin. It’s not just possible that this woman would have to take over the presidency at some point, it’s highly likely. And in the brief time we’ve known her, Palin has terrified people the world over with her narrow-minded viewpoints on a range of topics from creationism to – gulp – the environment.

Palin is so far to the right on the environment, her inclusion on the GOP ticket for this election effectively cancels out any environmental cred John McCain might have left. She supports offshore drilling anywhere, even if it doesn’t solve our energy problems. She doesn’t believe that global warming is man-made. She has opposed strengthening protection for Beluga whales in Alaska’s Cook Inlet, where oil and gas development has been proposed. She supports drilling in the ANWR, which is home to bears, gray wolves, sandhill cranes and a herd of caribou – but what does Sarah Palin care for such animals? She’s got a bear carcass in her office, regularly hunts caribou and supports shooting wolves from low-flying planes.

And finally, this about sums it up: she sued the federal government in response to polar bears being listed as endangered, because the classification that aims to protect these animals will interfere with oil drilling in Alaska’s coastal waters. Putting the oil industry before the environment: sounds familiar, doesn’t it? It’s the same old Republican policies, thinly veiled by a fading green cloak.

Palin Unable to Recall McCain’s History of Supporting Regulation

Sarah Palin is criminally unprepared to step foot in the White House, let alone be a heartbeat away from the presidency.  The McCain campaign has done everything they can to keep this woman under wraps and unavailable to the media, and the reason is becoming clear.  She doesn’t know enough about politics to be a middle school social studies teacher. Just look at how she reacted to questioning by Katie Couric about running mate John McCain’s history of supporting regulation.  She couldn’t name a single instance in which McCain had pushed for more regulation.  Check it out:

Is anyone else reminded, when watching Sarah Palin in interviews, of another beauty queen being asked a ‘tough question’?  Here, let me refresh your memory:

Gee, if Sarah Palin can’t even handle Katie Couric in an interview, I can’t wait to see the Vice Presidential debates.  It’s doubtful that Joe Biden will be anywhere near as gentle as Katie.  Whee!

Link [The Huffington Post]

John McCain is About as Green as a Barrel of Oil

John McCain has been trying to sell us the message that he’s ‘green’ for months now.  Between the false promises he spouts at every opportunity and his laughable line of ‘eco-friendly merchandise’, McCain is doing everything he can to appear just as environmentally responsible as his opponent, Barack Obama.  Too bad most of us are aware that it’s simply not true. Despite McCain’s attempts to greenwash his record and how he would run the country given the chance, his record shows that he’s about as green as a barrel of oil.

From Salon.com:

The facts are clear. All you have to do is look at his voting record. It reveals that McCain has long been one of the strongest opponents of clean energy in Congress, with a record matching that of James Inhofe, the most hardcore global-warming denier in the Senate, who comes from the heart of the oil patch in Oklahoma.

Recently the Associated Press noted that “McCain has not shown up for eight Senate votes last year and this year to extend [renewable energy] tax credits, which expire at the end of this year. The last such vote was July 30.” Yet at an Aspen Institute meeting in August, when McCain was asked about those missed votes, he simply lied to the audience.

As for McCain’s “long record of that support of alternate energy,” consider the votes on renewable energy funding and a federal “renewable portfolio standard” (RPS) that he did show up for this decade:

In every case, McCain voted against renewables, as did Sen. “Global warming is ‘the greatest hoax ever perpetrated on the American people’” Inhofe. On the Energy Policy Act of 2005, the biggest congressional effort to push alternative energy in more than a decade, McCain voted against it along with just 11 other senators. Even Inhofe voted for it.

As Salon notes, part of the reason McCain consistently votes against renewable energy is likely the fact that he’s technologically out of touch.  He has claimed that “the truly green technologies don’t work”, saying that “most every expert” he knows believes that even if we maximized renewables in every way, the contribution they would make is “very small”.  He also disagreed with T. Boone Pickens – the noted conservative Texas oil billionaire who’s now pushing wind power – that renewable energy could meet the demand over the next 20 years, a fact that even the Bush administration admits to.  If even Bush sees the truth of green technology and McCain doesn’t, you get the idea of how much trouble we’ll be in if this guy wins.

Link [Salon]
Photo credit: EarthFirst composite/AP

McCain Smacked Down by the Ladies of The View

OK, so this isn’t exactly green, but a McCain presidency would be a disaster for the environment, so we were super excited to see John McCain get slapped down by… The View? I have to say, I’m not a fan of The View at all – Elisabeth Hasslebeck is tough to stomach, and Sherri Shepherd makes frequent crazy-ignorant remarks. But every one of them – even notoriously conservative Elisabeth – had some sharp words for McCain last week when he was a guest on the show.

Check it out (via Salon):

Unsurprisingly, it was Joy Behar and Whoopi Goldberg who dished out the harshest questions.  This one from Behar was a gem: “There are ads running from your campaign, now we know that those two ads are untrue, they’re lies. And yet, you at the end of it say you approve these messages. Do you really approve them?”  McCain squirmed and managed a weak protest that they weren’t lies, but didn’t have much of an argument.

If only more members of the media would grow a pair of balls (as Amy-Poehler-in-Hillary-Clinton-mode said on SNL over the weekend) and ask McCain and Palin such questions.  As a Salon article accompanying this View clip rightly points out, until those words came out of Joy Behar’s mouth, no one had been brave enough yet to call McCain a liar to his face. Kick ass, ladies!

Link [Salon]

GOP VP Pick Sarah Palin is a Global Warming Denier

Sarah Palin questions global warming science and favors drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. She also opposed a state initiative that would have banned metal mines in her state from discharging pollution into salmon streams, and dropped a lawsuit intended to prevent polar bears from being listed as a threatened species. Not that any of these things are surprising considering that she’s a Republican, but the party’s questionable pick for VP is governor of Alaska, where the ANWR is located, and the state that has already seen the most dramatic effects of global warming.

From the Sydney Morning Herald:

The Alaska Governor has said that she has tried to persuade McCain to agree with her on drilling in the wildlife refuge. She also has said that she was happy that he changed his position over the summer and now supports offshore oil drilling.

Palin’s environmental views could get more of an airing now that she has landed on the national stage.

Last month, the state of Alaska under Palin’s guidance sued Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne in an attempt to reverse his decision to list polar bears as a threatened species. Palin said that scientists’ predictions that global warming would eliminate the ice where the bears live in summer were unreliable.

As we noted in an article posted yesterday, ‘7 Places Global Warming is Smacking the Crap Out of the Earth Right Now’, Alaska is the only U.S. state currently experiencing global warming effects on par with other areas of the world.  In some areas of the remote state, villages are being relocated because global warming has battered them with severe storms and melting ice has caused erosion and floods.

Besides, how does McCain aim to protect the environment when his #2 would be fighting him all the way?

Link [Sydney Morning Herald]
Photo credit: AP/Sydney Morning Herald

Big Shocker: McCain Has Missed 8 Crucial Votes on Renewable Energy

John McCain is a hypocrite. He tours the nation proclaiming himself to be a forward-thinking, green politician who cares deeply about the environment, attempting to paint himself as a reformer. He puts on a big show for his constituents, yelling about how Congress needs to come back from vacation and get started on legislation that will aid America in this energy crisis. And yet, he has personally missed eight – yes, EIGHT – crucial votes on a renewable energy bill.

The bill in question, S. 3335, would have extended investment tax credits for installing solar energy as well as the production tax credits for building wind turbines and other energy-efficiency systems. It’s absolutely vital to the emerging renewable energy industry, which depends on such credits to be competitive with the current polluting industries like coal and oil.

On July 30th, when McCain once again failed to show up to vote for the bill, it failed for the eighth time. As The New York Times reports, McCain missed all eight votes – and one of the times, he was in his office and couldn’t be bothered to saunter on down to participate in the vote.

From The New York Times:

What impact does this have? In the solar industry today there is a rush to finish any project that would be up and running by Dec. 31 — when the credits expire — and most everything beyond that is now on hold. Consider the Solana concentrated solar power plant, 70 miles southwest of Phoenix in McCain’s home state. It is the biggest proposed concentrating solar energy project ever. The farsighted local utility is ready to buy its power.

But because of the Senate’s refusal to extend the solar tax credits, “we cannot get our bank financing,” said Fred Morse, a senior adviser for the American operations of Abengoa Solar, which is building the project. “Without the credits, the numbers don’t work.” Some 2,000 construction jobs are on hold.

Big Oil uses the ‘it’s not cost effective’ excuse to keep solar and wind energy down, but making it cost effective is exactly what this bill is designed to do. No doubt the oil industry has something to do with all the ‘nay’ votes – our congressmen and women can’t seem to keep their hands out of Big Oil’s pockets.

This just goes to show that McCain is all talk and no action – he wants voters to believe that he’s an open-minded, middle-of-the-road Republican who’s out to protect the environment. It’s simply not true. When it comes down to it, McCain is clearly not passionate about turning this country around and bringing clean energy and millions of green collar jobs to American citizens.

If elected, there’s no question that he’d settle immediately into Big Oil’s cozy bosom and remain there until his term was up. Luckily, that’s not going to happen.

Link [The New York Times]
Photo credit: Flickr user Hot Rod

Obama Responds to McCain’s Backfiring ‘Tire Gauge’ Attacks

When Obama recommended conserving energy through measures like keeping tires inflated as an alternative to offshore drilling, he was ridiculed by the McCain camp, who then distributed tire gauges labeled “Barack Obama’s Energy Plan”. But then it was proven that Obama’s suggestion was right on target, and simple conservation efforts like properly inflated tires and regular tune-ups can save as much oil as offshore drilling would produce. Now, Obama’s got a few things to say to McCain about the episode.

From Yahoo! News:

“It will be interesting to watch this debate between John McCain and John McCain,” Obama said as he campaigned in Indiana with Sen. Evan Bayh, widely considered a top-tier candidate for running mate.

In mocking Obama, McCain told a motorcycle rally in Sturgis, S.D.: “My opponent doesn’t want to drill, he doesn’t want nuclear power, he wants you to inflate your tires.” The Republican National Committee widely distributed tire pressure gauges labeled “Obama energy plan” and suggested that was the Illinois senator’s only idea for reducing oil imports, although both candidates have offered multifaceted energy proposals.

You can see Obama here:

The RNC’s gift of tire gauges may be the single most helpful thing they’ve done for the country in the past decade. Not that they knew that when they passed them out, of course. Dumbasses.

Link [Yahoo! News]
Photo credit: Flickr user marcn

Paris Hilton Supports Drilling, so McCain Must be Right

Recently, John McCain’s campaign put out an ad attacking Obama for being ‘the biggest celebrity in the world’, comparing him to Paris Hilton and Britney Spears. In response (because she loves publicity so much, like oh my god) Paris Hilton teamed up with Funny or Die to produce this video, in which she states that if McCain is comparing her to Barack Obama, that must mean she’s running for president, so she presents her energy plan: a hybrid between McCain’s and Obama’s, recommending ‘limited offshore drilling’.

Politico has reactions from both candidates:

UPDATE: Obama spokesman Bill Burton reacts: “Whatever.”

UPDATE: McCain spokesman Tucker Bounds emails: “It sounds like Paris Hilton supports John McCain’s ‘all of the above’ approach to America’s energy crisis – including both alternatives and drilling. Paris Hilton might not be as big a celebrity as Barack Obama, but she obviously has a better energy plan.”

UPDATE: Shorter McCain, via Drudge (and the headline of Bounds’ press release): ‘Paris Supports Drilling’…

Love how McCain negatively likened Obama to Paris, and then suddenly cared what she has to say. So, if Paris Hilton agrees with John McCain, then his plan MUST be solid, right? Christ on a cracker.

Link [Politico]

Updated Publishers Note: I thought it was great that this ad showed up to the right of this post:

John McCain is an addled old parody of a joke. He’s a antiquated, desperate, weak old man with no principles. His presidency would be the end of our time as a great nation. Thank the FSM Obama is going to steamroll him in November.

Obama is Right About the Tire-Gauge Energy Solution

Republicans had a giddy, gleeful field day this week after Barack Obama stated that if all Americans inflated their tires properly and got their vehicles regular tune-ups, we could save as much oil as new offshore drilling could produce. This absolutely ridiculous suggestion really got them fired up, prompting the Republican National Committee to send Washington reporters tire gauges labeled “Barack Obama’s Energy Plan” in an attempt to ridicule the Democratic presidential candidate.

Too bad the joke’s on them – Obama’s statement is true. From TIME Magazine:

The Bush Administration estimates that expanded offshore drilling could increase oil production by 200,000 bbl. per day by 2030. We use about 20 million bbl. per day, so that would meet about 1% of our demand two decades from now. Meanwhile, efficiency experts say that keeping tires inflated can improve gas mileage 3%, and regular maintenance can add another 4%. Many drivers already follow their advice, but if everyone did, we could immediately reduce demand several percentage points. In other words: Obama is right.

As TIME points out, conservation and efficiency are the best approach to dealing with the energy crisis, and we can do it without making huge changes to our lifestyle. There are a million different ways that we could use to seriously reduce our energy use if most of the people in the country gave them a shot: better insulation, unplugging electronics that aren’t in use, carpooling, cutting down on idling and reducing our speed on the road. What Obama has suggested is the obvious front line of defense against the energy crisis: common sense.

It’s a pretty simple concept: if our use of fossil fuels is increasing our reliance on Middle Eastern dictators while destroying the planet, maybe we ought to use less.

I couldn’t have said it better myself.

Link [TIME Magazine]

McCain Falsely Claimed that Oil Rigs Can Withstand Hurricanes

Republican presidential nominee John McCain’s camp already made a misstep on the subject last week when Nancy Pfotenhauer, his senior policy advisor, mistakenly claimed that Hurricanes Katrina and Rita “did not spill a drop of oil”. Pfotenhauer admitted later to being misinformed, but that didn’t stop McCain from making another false statement about oil rigs and hurricanes the following day.

From Think Progress:

Q: I’ve been listening to your comments around renewable resources – solar, tide, and wind – you’ve talked a lot about that, but you keep peppering your comments with offshore drilling. But I’m not sure what you think the impact on our environment is based on that.

A: Keep the microphone. I’m aware that off the coast of Louisiana and Texas there are oil rigs, as we well know, and those rigs have survived, very successfully, the impacts of hurricanes – hurricane Katrina as far as Louisiana is concerned.

McCain is wrong. According to press reports, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita “tore through the Gulf of Mexico’s offshore oil and gas fields, toppling production platforms, setting rigs adrift and rupturing pipelines.” The U.S. Minerals Management Service reported that the hurricanes totally destroyed 113 offshore oil platforms.

Think Progress further explains that the hurricanes cost the largest offshore driller, Transocean, about $135 million in repairs, downtime and equipment upgrades. In fact, damage to offshore rigs accounted for 77% of the oil industry’s storm costs. The photos above show some of the damage.

So, is McAddled intentionally lying so that offshore drilling sounds like a good idea, or is he just confused? I know the internet is really hard to use, so it might be tough to find the right websites that tell you what actually happened. There there, Senator. Your frightening journey through the world of modern technology is almost over.

Link [Think Progress]

Arnold’s Subtle Digs at McCain and Crist over Offshore Drilling

When you can’t legally run for President, it frees you up to say the darndest things. Arnold Schwarzenegger appeared at the Florida Climate Change Summit in Miami last week, where he subtly blasted Florida governor Charlie Crist and Republican President-Wannabe John McCain for supporting offshore drilling.

From TampaBay.com:

But he appeared to issue a firm rebuke to politicians (including Senator John McCain and Crist) who have suggested ending a ban on offshore drilling in the Gulf of Mexico. “Anyone who tells you this will lower our gas prices anytime soon is blowing smoke,” he said.

Schwarzenegger’s press spokesman Aaron McLear called me a short while ago to stress that this comment was NOT directed at Crist or McCain, and instead was targeted specifically at the impact of offshore drilling on gas prices. “He was not referring to either one of them. Neither Crist nor McCain has said offshore drilling is going to immediately reduce gas prices,” McLear said.

However, the California Governor remained firmly opposed to offshore drilling, McLear added. “He doesn’t believe in offshore drilling. Her certainly doesn’t agree with McCain and Crist on that.”

I don’t know about Crist, but McCain has certainly hinted that offshore drilling will lower gas prices, an attempt to gain approval from voters desperate for some help. Seems like Arnold’s trying to get his point across without causing a rift.

Arnold, a self-proclaimed ‘green Republican’, has seen a lot of criticism himself for his attitude about how we can stop global warming – as Bill Walker of the Environmental Working Group put it, “He’s not sounding an alarm; he’s reassuring us that everything will be all right. We can have hot rods and clean air! Relax, have a cigar.” Arnold has also taken millions of dollars from oil companies over the years. Murky waters, indeed, but we’re glad to have Republicans who are at least headed in the right direction. It’s going to take both parties to effect real change.

Link [TampaBay.com]
Photo credit: Getty Images

McCain Proposes $300 Million Prize for Alternative Auto Battery

If John McCain has his way, coming up with a new sustainable energy solution will be one big game show. McCain has proposed a $300 million prize to anyone who can develop an automobile battery that best surpasses existing technology.

From CNN:

McCain said the new automobile battery should have “the size, capacity, cost and power to leapfrog the commercially available plug-in hybrids or electric cars.”

“In the quest for alternatives to oil, our government has thrown around enough money subsidizing special interests and excusing failure,” McCain said. “From now on, we will encourage heroic efforts in engineering, and we will reward the greatest success.”

Obama’s response, per the Detroit News:

“When John F. Kennedy decided that we were going to put a man on the moon, he didn’t put a bounty out for some rocket scientist to win — he put the full resources of the United States government behind the project and called on the ingenuity and innovation of the American people,” the Illinois senator said in a speech in Las Vegas. “That’s the kind of effort we need to achieve energy independence in this country, and nothing less will do.”

McCain’s battery proposal is no doubt an attempt to get back in the favor of some moderate environmentalists who disagree with his views on offshore drilling. If he were really serious about improving battery technology, he’d pledge to invest money in research grants and other incentives. Even with the possibility of $300 million at the end of the road, individuals and small companies would be unlikely to afford the research that would be necessary to create such a battery – more likely, the prize would end up in the hands of some huge corporation. Hardly a way to encourage American innovation. McCain might as well just ready himself for the reaming he’s gonna take in November.

Link [CNN] + [Detroit News]
Photo credit: Flickr user aflcio2008

The Truth About McCain and Big Oil

McCain, Big Oil. Big Oil, McCain. Where does one stop and the other begin? You’d be hard pressed to figure that out, considering how many of his advisors have lobbied for oil industry interests. And that’s not all. In 2008 alone, McCain has taken $485,526 from Big Oil.

From Brave New Films:

The Center for Responsive Politics finds that McCain has accepted over $1 million from the oil and gas industry. Many of McCain’s top advisers have lobbied for big oil, which is why he now acts in their best interests, opposing environmental legislation and alternative energy plans. And that’s exactly why we want everyone to know The REAL McCain.

McCain is desperate to distance himself from President Bush. But according to the Center for American Progress Action Fund, McCain has received millions in donations from the same oil, coal, nuclear, chemical, utility, and auto companies that helped the Bush administration create its energy plan—a plan that has raised gasoline to $4 a gallon.

If you know anyone who’s on the fence about McCain, forward this on to them!

Link [Brave New Films]

McCain Wants 45 New Nuclear Reactors by 2030

Once again, Republican presidential nominee John McCain is proving that his ideas about ‘saving the environment’ don’t mesh with the majority of environmentalists’ views. McCain is advocating nuclear power in a big way – he plans to set the nation on course to build 45 new nuclear reactors by the year 2030.

From Reuters:

“If I am elected president, I will set this nation on a course to building 45 new reactors by the year 2030, with the ultimate goal of 100 new plants to power the homes and factories and cities of America,” he said.

There are 104 operating nuclear reactors nationwide at present, which generate about 20 percent of the nation’s power supply.

McCain has argued forcefully for further nuclear plants, seeing them as part of a solution to fighting climate change and establishing U.S. energy independence.

Obama, on the other hand, taking a more realistic stance. Last week, his campaign said that they see nuclear power as an important part of setting the U.S. on a path toward clean energy, but that the issue of disposing of nuclear waste and solving nuclear proliferation concerns are also crucial. On June 20th, Obama said that nuclear power was worth careful consideration but that it was not a panacea.

Link [Reuters]
Photo credit: Flickr user Christopher Peterson

McCain Counts on Public Ignorance with New Global Warming Ads

One thing about this election season has been made very clear: McCain thinks that we’re all a bunch of idiots. And, maybe a lot of us are (namely, the people who are already planning to vote for him), but he’d better hope that the independents he’s targeting with his new global warming ads are totally uneducated on environment-related topics.

From Salon’s War Room:

The commercial, titled “Global,” starts out like an attack ad aimed at smog, traffic and all things hazardous for the environment, with alarming images flashing on the screen before a sun sets in heavy haze. Then soft, comforting Muzak comes up behind a woman’s voice, reading a script that makes clear what the answer to all those problems is: McCain.

“John McCain stood up to the president and sounded the alarm on global warming, five years ago,” the narrator says. “Today, he has a realistic plan that will curb greenhouse gas emissions. A plan that will help grow our economy and protect our environment.” Those black-and-white shots of clogged highways and polluting factories from the opening are gone, replaced by nice color images of windmills, blue sky, water flowing over a dam, a worker assembling a truck (could it be a hybrid?) and, finally, McCain himself, standing on a windy bluff, looking like Mark Trail as he surveys the wilderness around him.

“Reform. Prosperity. Peace,” the narrator purrs. “John McCain.”

“John McCain stood up to the president and sounded the alarm on global warming, five years ago” is the stupidest sentence I’ve ever heard. McCain’s record speaks louder than words. His past voting shows that his views on environmental policy don’t vary much from those of the Bush administration. McCain has lobbyist connections to Big Oil and foreign dictators of oil-rich countries. Plus, he supports offshore drilling. Need I say more?

Watch the video at Salon, I’ve OD’ed on John McCain ads after all the ones that were plastered all over EarthFirst for a while there.

Link [Salon]

‘Eco-Minded’ McCain Supports Offshore Drilling

Perhaps someone needs to clue John McCain in: calling oneself an environmentalist in one breath and supporting big oil in another = hypocrisy. McCain, in answer to rising public pressure over gas prices, keeps saying we need to “eliminate our dependence on foreign oil”. What he doesn’t seem to get is that we need to eliminate our dependence on oil, period. Not just foreign oil. Drilling for oil here in America is not going to solve the energy crisis, nor is drilling in Brazil, the Arctic or anywhere else.

McCain is calling for the federal government to lift restrictions on offshore drilling in the U.S., insisting that it will help ease the financial burden Americans are facing due to high gas prices. The Washington Post has the details:

McCain’s announcement is a reversal of the position he took in his 2000 presidential campaign and a break with environmental activists, even as he attempts to win the support of independents and moderate Democrats. Since becoming the presumptive GOP nominee in March, McCain has presented himself as a friend of the environment by touting his plans to combat global warming and his opposition to drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and in the Everglades.

Representatives of several environmental groups criticized him for backing an idea they said would endanger the nation’s most environmentally sensitive waters.

“It’s disappointing that Senator McCain is clinging to the failed energy policies of the past,” said Tiernan Sittenfeld, legislative director for the League of Conservation Voters.

Sierra Club political director Cathy Duvall said McCain “is using the environment as a way to portray himself as being different from George Bush. But the reality is that he isn’t.” The group began running radio commercials yesterday that criticize McCain’s environmental record in the battleground state of Ohio.

It’s clear that McCain is pandering to a nation of ignorant people who have no understanding of the energy crisis and are simply worried about their own finances and energy-sucking way of life. McCain is not thinking about America’s future, or what we’re going to do once oil really runs out. He’s thinking about what the idiots of our nation want to hear, and how he can use that to get elected.

Obama, meanwhile, has this to say about it:

“Our dependence on foreign oil strains family budgets and it saps our economy. Oil money pays for the bombs going off from Baghdad to Beirut, and the bombast of dictators from Caracas to Tehran,” Obama said. “Our nation will not be secure unless we take that leverage away, and our planet will not be safe unless we move decisively toward a clean energy future.”

I hope any of you moderate Republicans and Independents who bought McCain’s environment spiel kept the receipt for all that eco-friendly merchandise.

Link [The Washington Post]
Photo credit: Flickr user TheConcreteJungleBook.com

McCain Doesn’t Want to Give Veterans Increased Education Benefits

Apparently, John McCain wants you to support the troops – but not too much. Wear your flag pins and display those yellow ribbons on your vehicles with pride. But don’t actually give the troops the education benefits they were promised before joining the armed forces. That would be wrong, apparently. See, a bill was recently introduced in the Senate that would expand education benefits for veterans. It’s the least we owe them for their service, right? Well, McCain quotes a study that was done on the bill that claims retention rates would decrease by 16% if soldiers were offered more money for college. The funny thing is, he failed to read the quote in the same study that showed that recruitment rates would simultaneously increase – by 16%. Now, we all know that Senator McCain is no mathematician, and I’m not either, but last time I checked, 16 minus 16 equals…. Zero.

From Yahoo News:

McCain, the all-but-nominated Republican presidential candidate, opposes a Democratic-backed bill that would significantly expand the breadth of education benefits for veterans, first adopted for those returning from World War II. Democrats want the proposal included in a war spending bill the Senate is scheduled to vote on this week.

The legislation, sponsored by Democratic Sen. Jim Webb of Virginia and Republican Sen. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, also veterans of Vietnam, would guarantee full tuition payments to veterans at any public school in their home state. Its expected cost is $52 billion over 10 years.

McCain says the legislation is too expensive and has proposed his own version, which would increase the monthly benefit available to most veterans to $1,500 from $1,100. It would not offer the equivalent of a full scholarship.

As Jon Stewart noted on the Daily Show last night, “Where did potential soldiers get the idea that the military was some kind of ‘fast-track to college’ in the first place?” Oh, right, it could be all those ads the military runs where grateful soldiers talk about the military being the only reason they were able to attend college. Nice blunder, McCain – especially when your military record was probably the biggest benefit you had on your side.

Check out a clip from last night’s Daily Show here.

Link [Yahoo News] + [Comedy Central]

McCain Campaign Advisors Paid to Stop Cape Wind Renewable Energy Project

Some people out there still seem to need evidence that McCain is just Bush 2.0, and luckily for all of us, McCain’s camp keeps on delivering. Surprise, surprise: two high placed advisors in the McCain campaign worked with lobbyists to stop the Cape Wind renewable energy project.

From The Sietch Blog:

Charlie Black, Senior Political Adviser to McCain: Senate lobbying disclosure documents reveal that lobbying firm BKSH & Associates was retained in January 2008 by the Alliance to
Protect Nantucket Sound to “Defeat the proposal for 130 wind turbines” and “promote alternative means to meet energy needs without sacrificing Nantucket Sound.” Charlie Black was the chairman of BKSH until March. [Senate Lobbying Disclosure Act database]

Tom Loeffler, McCain’s Campaign Co-chairman: The Loeffler Group received $380,000 from the Alliance to Protect Nantucket Sound from 2003 to 2005 to lobby against Cape Wind. The Loeffler Group was founded by former Republican congressman Tom Loeffler, who remains its chairman. [Senate Lobbying Disclosure Act database]…

In addition to these two jokers, McCain also recently had advisors quit after it was revealed that one was actively working for Myanmar and one had ties to the Saudi government. McCain tries to play himself as an honest guy who’s more moderate than the Bush administration and open to new ideas. Too bad “Mr. Straight Talker Reformerman” is thick with lobbyists who have anything but the best interests of the American people in mind. Taking money to help corporations, organizations and foreign governments tighten their grip on American society. What else is new?

Of course, that doesn’t mean that all of the people who plan to vote for McCain have two brain cells to rub together and are therefore able to process this information. For them, there is no hope. However, perhaps those still on the fence will take it into consideration. There has been a haze of corruption over the White House for nearly 8 years, and McCain taking office will only make it more ominous.

Link [The Sietch Blog] + [Cape Wind]
Photo source: Flickr user Hot Rod Homepage

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