Climate and Energy in Obama's State of the Union

Job creation is the number one priority for 2010, US President Barack Obama said Wednesday night in his State of the Union address. But he is not giving up on climate change action, despite the fact Congressional Democrats have said in recent weeks that cap-and-trade is dead in the water.

Obama did not mention cap-and-trade specifically in his speech, suggesting perhaps he is resigned to achieving his climate goals by other means. 

But he made a strong plea for Congress to show greater leadership so the US will not fall behind countries like China, Germany and India in developing the clean energy economy. 

Throughout the speech, Obama demonstrated the rhetorical brilliance that helped put him in office. On numerous occasions he baited reticent Republican legislators, drawing their applause on topics of agreement, before hooking them on the divisive issue. These moments in which Obama slyly grinned at Republicans verged on comedy at times–for instance following the qualify statement: "I know that there are those who disagree with the overwhelming scientific evidence on climate change."

Less humorous perhaps was the listing of concessions Obama said he is willing to make to secure climage change legislation:

"…to create more of these clean energy jobs, we need more production, more efficiency, more incentives. And that means building a new generation of safe, clean nuclear power plants in this country. (full-chamber applause) It means making tough decisions about opening new offshore areas for oil and gas development. (full-chamber applause) It means continued investment in advanced biofuels and clean coal technologies. (full-chamber applause) And, yes, it means passing a comprehensive energy and climate bill with incentives that will finally make clean energy the profitable kind of energy in America." (No Republican applause)

Obama also proposed a three-year freeze on most domestic spending, beginning in 2011. A New York Times article suggests that climate and energy programs could see boosts, despite a budget freeze. Read the story at the link below.