Obama buzz felt at global climate talks reads the headline from the A.P. John Kerry, the next chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations committee, is quoted. “”America is back,’ says Sen. John Kerry, underscoring that Barack Obama’s election signals a U.S. intent to regain a leadership role on climate change. “After eight years of obstruction and delay and denial, the United States is going to rejoin the world community in tackling this global challenge.'” The “FT” reports here that Al Gore will also be in attendance. Obama said during the campaign that Gore would have a role in his work on addressing climate change.
Barbara Boxer, head of the Senate Environment & Public Works committee, is going to Poznan too. In remarks on the committee’s action plan on global warming from a couple of weeks ago, she said “President-elect Obama told the world on Tuesday that our country will be an ally in the fight against global warming. I am here to say that our Committee stands ready to be a tireless ally in that effort.” (See here for what Obama said.) Henry Waxman, the new chair of the House Energy and Commerce committee will also be at the meetings.
While the Bush Administration will send a delegation led by State Department Under Secretary for Democracy and Global Affairs Paula J. Dobriansky, they are unlikely to make any firm commitments.
It should be noted that Obama’s choice for Secretary of State, Hillary Rodham Clinton, has had a good record on supporting tough climate change legislation, as well as a viable plan when she was running for President on energy, jobs and climate change. See this analysis by David Roberts at The Gristmill. Former President Bill Clinton certainly has been working hard on the issue too. See his website and this yesterday from Bloomberg News.
It is further not-in-the-least insignificant that Bill Richardson is being named Secretary of Commerce. Richardson has a deep well of experience on energy and in his new post at Commerce he will be in a position to greatly impact the course of international trade and climate change negotiations.
Bottom line: As we’ve been seeing over and over again, the stars have realigned to effect serious climate change and energy legislation for this country and to bring the US fully back to the table, indeed into a leadership role, on this key international issue.
