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Past Event

Opportunity 08

A New Political Climate for Global Warming

Climate Change, Energy Security, Environment, Global Environment, Environmental Regulation


Event Summary

Global warming is now a key issue in the 2008 presidential campaign, sparking a larger debate about energy use and provoking policy prescriptions ranging from diplomacy to conservation to investing in research and harnessing market forces. On May 22, the Opportunity 08 project at the Brookings Institution hosts veteran campaign policy advisors in its second forum on the nation's most pressing policy challenges.

Event Information

When

Tuesday, May 22, 2007
10:00 AM to 12:00 PM

Where

Falk Auditorium
The Brookings Institution
1775 Massachusetts Ave, NW
Washington, DC 20036
Map

Contact: Brookings Office of Communications

E-mail: events@brookings.edu

Phone: 202.797.6105

Panel Two: The Political Climate Participants included John Raidt, long-time advisor to Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.); Denis McDonough, policy advisor for Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.); James Kvaal, policy director for former Sen. John Edwards (D-N.C.); and Todd Stern, policy advisor for Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.). They examined how the issues of global warming, energy security and the environment can-and should-affect the 2008 election. Rick Klein, senior political reporter and author of ABC's "The Note," will moderate the discussion.

The event  also included Brookings Managing Director William Antholis, an expert on the international politics of climate change; David Sandalow, Brookings Energy & Environment Scholar; and Gregg Easterbrook, a visiting fellow at Brookings.

Opportunity 08 aims to help presidential candidates and the public focus on critical issues facing the nation, providing ideas, policy forums, and information on a broad range of domestic and foreign policy questions.

Panel One:
The Challenge of Global Warming and Energy Security


Moderator:

William Antholis
Brookings Managing Director

Panelists:

David Sandalow
Brookings Energy &
Environment Scholar

Gregg Easterbrook
Brookings Visiting Fellow
Panel Two:
The Political Climate


Moderator:

Rick Klein
ABC News Senior Political Reporter and
Author of ABC's "The Note"

Panelists:

John Raidt
Policy Advisor, John McCain 2008
(via video teleconference)

James Kvaal
Policy Director, John Edwards for President
Denis McDonough
Policy Advisor, Obama for America

Todd Stern
Policy Advisor, Hillary Clinton for President


Transcript

DAVID SANDALOW: Remember the date, September 28th, 2006. I think it is going to be remembered as a turning point in the global warming debate, and here's why. On September 27th, 2006, Governor Schwarzenegger signed AB 32 which is cap and trade legislation for the State of California -- by far the most aggressive and far reaching climate change legislation ever enacted in this country. I pick the next day as the pivotal date because, on September 28th, the newspapers in California and around the country said that by signing AB32, Governor Schwarzenegger sealed the deal for his reelection.

<>
A New Political Climate for Global Warming

Greg Easterbrook, David Sandalow, and Bill Antholis

Watch Panel I: (wmv)
> Panel Presentations
> Q&A

Listen Panel I: (mp3)
> Panel Presentations

John Raidt, Denis McDonough, James Kvaal, Todd Stern and Rick Klein

Watch Panel II: (wmv)
> Panel Presentations
> Q&A

Listen Panel II: (mp3)
> Panel Presentations
Now for those of us who have been working on global warming issues for 10 or 20 years the notion that signing a global warming bill could "seal the deal" for a politician's reelection is quite revolutionary. It reflects the underlying trend that Bill is pointing to.

Since September 28th, 2006, we have seen a pretty astonishing report from the world scientists. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reviewed thousands and thousands of peer-reviewed pieces of literature and came up with the conclusion that evidence of warming is "unequivocal," that it is highly likely, in excess of 90-degree certainty, that the warming that we have seen so far is caused by human beings and human activities. They went on to detail a range of conclusions. They point out, for example, that the last time temperature was as high as it is today for a sustained period, sea levels rose by about four to six meters as a result of glacial melting. There's a long list of other conclusions on the science.

To take another minute, if I could, in terms of your broad question, Bill, on why this has received such broad attention. In addition to the science, I guess I would point to four factors.

The first is the business community. What we've seen from the business community over the course of the past year has been quite astounding. In addition to General Electric and Wal-Mart and other major companies such as that signing on to the notion of binding cap and trade legislation in January, we have just in the past month, seen General Motors signing on to that notion too. For those who have paid attention to this debate for a long time, the notion that GM would be signing on to binding cap and trade legislation is pretty revolutionary. . .


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