The Blog @ Spolitics

Clinton Tries to Steal Gore’s Thunder

by Heywood U. Reedmore -- June 13, 2006 at 12:08 pm | In No, Seriously | No Comments

In another cheapshot from the peanut gallery that has come to define the Clinton Post-Presidency, Clinton said Republican policies will lead to more severe hurricanes. The odd thing is, those “Republican policies” don’t differ a whole lot from the policies he enacted while in office. Clinton knew Kyoto was a stinker which is why he passed the buck to Bush.

But what’s even more Gauling is that Clinton is trying to glom on to Al Gore’s newfound status as the darling of the left.

“It is now generally recognized that while Al Gore and I were ridiculed, we were right about global warming.”

Gore was the one really willing to risk politcal capital on the issue. Here’s how a December 2, 1997 WaPo article put it:

Kathleen A. McGinty, chairwoman of the White House Council on Environmental Quality, said Gore was “not Polyanna-ish” about the tough selling job he faces in Kyoto, as well as the political difficulties he could face at home. “This entire issue is fraught with political peril,” she said. “But this is a question of leadership.”

White House aides said the vice president decided to accept the risks because he knows this is a signal moment for environmental issues. “This is not a political winner as an issue,” said a senior official who asked not to be named. But “it’s very hard for the vice president to pass up an opportunity to talk about this issue.”

It was a “question of leadership” and so Clinton had Gore take the lead.

Here’s how environmentalists summed up Clinton’s efforts on Global Warming in November, 2000, just as he was about to leave office.

“The bottom line result of the U.S. negotiating position is that virtually no pollution reduction measures would need to be undertaken in the United States,” said Alden Meyer, director of government relations with the Union of Concerned Scientists. “We could continue to drive gas-guzzling SUVs and operate dirty coal power plants while technically meeting our Kyoto obligations.”

Jennifer Morgan, director of the World Wildlife Fund’s climate change campaign, said the outcome of The Hague meeting could be the Clinton administration’s most critical legacy. “While many governments want to do the right thing, we remain extremely concerned that the U.S. and others are negotiating a do-nothing treaty that does not require any real reductions at home,” Morgan said.

So who did like Clinton’s policy on global warming? Enron. It makes you wonder: if Clinton knew he was right about the danger posed by global warming, why didn’t he try and do more about it?