Tom Friedman says exactly what he thinks of John McCain on NPR today. Follow me beyond the fold for more:
If you are looking for a handout to give to folks comparing records, here is The League of Conservation Voters scorecard, where McCain has a lifetime score of 24% where Obama has a lifetime score of 86% (and McCain's score for 2007 was an amazing 0% - I guess he's proud of that one!).
Tom Friedman was on Fresh Air with Terri Gross on NPR today. Great interview. He's promoting his new book, Hot, Flat and Crowded. Let's hope he's doing his book show on every TV show and gets this passionate. It was great hearing him take it to John McCain.
http://www.npr.org/...
I roughly transcribed some excerpts from the beginning of the show, but you should listen to the whole thing:
Terri Gross: I was reading your book, last Wednesday night, as I was listening to the Republican Convention, so as I was reading your thoughts on ending our oil addiction, I heard Rudy Giuliani, leading a chant of "Drill, Baby, Drill." As I listened to everyone chanting "Drill Baby Drill" at the Republican National Convention, I wondered what would Tom Friedman have to say about that? So, what do you have to say about that?
Tom Friedman: Well, I started to imagine a column, where the, um, Saudi, Russian and Venezualan observers at the Republican convention were watching this, and what would they be saying to each other? They would be up there in one of those skyboxes, high-fiving each other, it is happy days are here again, drill baby drill. Because what basically Guiliani was leading that crowd into saying, was is "let's stay addicted to oil," and boy, that is the best news in the world, for the Venezualan, Russian and Saudi delegates, they couldn't have scripted a chant like that better themselves.
TG: Why?
TF: Because, basically, what is it that they want? They're looking for the United States to remain focused on fossil fuels, and not throw everything, and I mean everything Terri into innovation around clean energy technologies and a clean energy system.
You know when I think about that Drill, Baby, Drill mantra, Terri, you know what I'm reminded of? It's as if, that Republican convention, on the eve of the birth of the internet, and the Personal Computer, was up chanting, lets stick with "IBM Selectric typewriters, IBM Selectric forever, type, type, type" okay? We're on the eve of a new technological revolution, it's as if on the eve of the PC and the internet, the entire convention was standing up and chanting, IBM Selectric typewriters, what a wonderful bridge to the 21st century.
TG: Well, I'd love to hear your brief takes on where the candidates stand on energy. So, lets start with John McCain
TF: Well, you know I'm very disappointed in John McCain, I have to tell you Terri, because he's someone I respected as a leader, as a political figure, and someone who, as I thought about this campaign before it began, wow, this is great, for the first time, we have two green candidates, and I don't think that anymore. Um, there has been a bill pending before the US Senate, for the last year, it's been voted on, or attempted to pass eight times, this gets a little technical, but it's very important. It's a bill to extend the production and investment gas credits for wind and solar energy. So if Terri Gross wants to start a company to put solar panels up you would get this tax credit that would make it enormously beneficial for you to do that, or if Terri Gross wanted to start a wind company, you would get this production credit. What's happening is that on December 31 the existing credits are gonna expire and for the last year, the US Senate has been trying to pass an extension of these tax credits, and it has failed now 8 times, and all 8 times that bill was voted on John McCain failed to show up, including one time when he was actually in Washington DC and wouldn't come to the vote, and it failed by one vote, 59 to 40. And that is very disappointing to me especially since the biggest concentrated solar project in the world right now, is on paper ready to go, and outside of where? Phoneix, Arizona. It involves somewhere between 1500 and 2000 jobs, as much steel - these are blue-collar manufacturing projects - as the Golden Gate bridge, nad yet John McCain did not show up one time, Obama showed up three times and voted in favor, McCain did not show up once. That's one disappointment I have. Second disappointment, he's supported a lifting of the Federal gasoline tax for the summer driving season which is such an absurb ridiculous giveaway, of federal tax dollars to encourage the worst kind of behavior, summer driving, which would only drive up demand for oil, and make us more addicted. And lastly, he has been out, I'm really sorry to say, really misleading the American people, making them stupid, by telling them, that if we just drill, drill, drill today your gasoline price at the pump will come down today, and therefore if Obama doesn't say drill drill drill too, he is raising your gasoline price at the pump today. It is bloody dishonest, it is making people stupid, and frankly I find it disgusting as this critical moment.
TG: Woah, you have strong feelings.
. . .
TG: So, in that respect, our addiction is indirectly funding terrorism?
TF: Oh absolutely, um, absolutely, it's um funding just about every bad trend in the world today, if we could find a way to truly get off our addiction to oil, as Michael Mandlebaum says in the book, it is not just "Win, Win" for us, it is "Win, Win, Win, Win, Win, Win, Win, Win." Our trade deficit dramatically improves, our dollar strengthens, we weaken the worst regimes in the world, we mitigate global warming, we clean up our air, we are healthier, more secure, more economically strong, competitive and respected around the world. And people are out there saying "Drill, baby, Drill"? What planet are these people inhabiting? What am I missing here? What planet are you on exactly?