So said today an unidentified aide to President Obama. In the run-up to the Copenhagen climate conference in early December, the big question is "Will Obama go to the conference?"
The ice caps are melting, the glaciers are disappearing, Australia is on fire, and countries are being submerged under rising sea levels.
Yet Obama still will be criticized by the likes of Inhoffe, Massey Coal, and Southern Company. The President will be criticized no matter what he chooses as he tries to dig out of the American climate action black hole left by his predecessors:
Obama officials have come under fire on the world stage headed into
Copenhagen for not taking a more aggressive stance on the climate
issue, including pushing more forcefully to pass U.S. climate
legislation ahead of the negotiations.
Mindful of the potential for more criticism, the Obama aides countered
by citing the legislative progress on Capitol Hill, as well as a series
of administrative and regulatory moves on energy and climate. And they
also made several backhand slaps at the George W. Bush administration.
"He was turning around an ocean liner," one aide said.
On the other hand, Obama gets the scathing criticism from Europe. It doesn't get any worse than being compared to George W. Bush.
"U.S. President Barack Obama came to office promising hope and change,"
Christian Schwägerl, an editor at the German magazine Der Spiegel,
wrote last week in a widely circulated editorial. "But on climate
change, he had followed in the footsteps of his predecessor, George W.
Bush. Now, should the climate summit in Copenhagen fail, the blame will
lie squarely with Obama."
So in the midst of this onslaught of criticism, the Administration IS justified in pointing to the enormity of the clean energy transition ahead. But that is just one more reason, we all must insist that our President
GOES TO COPENHAGEN
and pledges at least
A 20% CUT IN EMISSIONS BY 2020.
Nothing less than that, Mr. President. We WILL have your back covered if you do us proud.