Little did I know, when I composed my somewhat cynical take on global warming and the upcoming State of the Union speech yesterday, that the chief White House figure charged with achieving climate change action would shortly be departing. Carol Browner is taking off, her chief mandate--a climate bill--unmet. There's no surer sign that nothing major is going to happen on global warming in the next two years--except maybe some brutal battles at the EPA. The president can adopt centrist, business friendly talking points and even get himself reelected in that way--but the climate system is another matter. It won't be waiting for anybody. Incidentally, a valued correspondent reminds me of a weakness in my last piece, in which I argued that the clean energy message was the right one for the president to adopt:
Don't get me wrong: I think climate scientists should communicate clearly about climate science to ...
