Globe Columnist Says Political Leadership Gone on Energy/Climate

Joshua Green, a senior editor at The Atlantic magazine and a new columnist for the Boston Globe, wrote in the Globe that even a disastrous Gulf of Mexico oil spill has failed to pressure Washington political leaders to move ahead with landmark climate and energy legislation. "This should have prompted the Senate to look anew at the energy bill, which steers the country towards a cleaner, safer energy future," Green wrote. "But that's not what has happened. Many early responders in both parties have defended, not condemned, offshore drilling."

Green quoted Sen. David Vitter, R-La., as saying: "I don't think that there's any argument that we should just start shutting down activity now, or even start shutting down new activity that's planned." He quoted House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, as saying: "This tragedy should remind us that America needs a real, comprehensive energy plan, like Republicans' 'all-of-the-above' strategy."

Green noted that even President Obama has done little to turn the tide, offering a comment that he describes as "most feckless" when he said: "Let me be clear. I continue to believe that domestic oil production is an important part of our overall strategy for energy security."

Concluded Green: "Perversely, the Gulf disaster has had the short-term effect of weakening the already tepid support for a Senate climate bill. That may change as Louisiana's coastline is subsumed by oil. Washington eventually responds to public outrage. (Just ask Goldman Sachs.) But for now, energy can join the long list of issues on which Washington leadership has vanished."