From gun control to gay rights, President Barack Obama's second-term agenda is shaping up as an unabashedly liberal wish list.
In less than a week, he's vowed to tackle climate change and protect government entitlements. His administration has lifted a ban on women in combat and expanded opportunities for disabled students. Proposals for stricter gun laws have already been unveiled, and plans for comprehensive immigration reform, including a pathway to citizenship for millions of illegal immigrants, are coming next week.
Obama's full embrace of such an agenda suggests a president both freed for action by his re-election win and seeking to capitalize on it.
'There is a deep recognition that he has a short period of time to get a lot done,' said Jennifer Psaki, Obama's 2012 campaign spokeswoman. 'The American people are seeing a man who is determined to finish what he started in his first term, pushing through his agenda without the burden of running for re-election.'
But following through and winning approval for his proposals will require cooperation from a Congress that is nearly as divided now as it was before the November elections.
'If the president pursues that kind of agenda, obviously it's not designed to bring us together,' said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, who calls the start of Obama's second term 'a new era of liberalism.'
And it's not just congressional Republicans who could stand in Obama's way as he seeks to make good on his pledges. Senate Democrats from conservative-leaning states - who, unlike Obama, still face future elections - may have reservations about backing a liberal agenda in the lead-up to the 2014 midterms.
Democratic resistance is already proving to be a problem for some of the toughest gun control measures that Obama proposed ahead of his inauguration in response to the elementary school shooting in Newtown, Conn. An assault weapons ban, in particular, appears to be in jeopardy, with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada among the Democrats yet to voice support.
Obama's tilt to the left follows a presidential campaign that left open questions about what policies he would pursue if he won a second term. His most specific campaign pledge was to let George W. Bush-era tax cuts expire for the wealthiest Americans, a step he was able to achieve during the 'fiscal cliff' negotiations in late December.
That's why many of his strongest supporters were surprised - some pleasantly - by the issues he raised in his inaugural address, particularly his call for tackling the threat of climate change, a topic that garnered little attention during the campaign.
And after campaigning on a balanced approach to deficit reduction, including making tough choices on entitlement programs, Obama used his inauguration to extol the virtues of Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. He made just one reference to the huge federal deficit.
Obama has previously said he's willing to put government entitlements on the table as Washington seeks to reduce the deficit, and aides say his inaugural address doesn't change that.
Obama also became the first president to use the word 'gay' in an inaugural address, asserting that the nation's journey is not complete until 'our gay brothers and sisters are treated like anyone else under the law.'
Progressive groups welcomed the president's rhetoric, but made it clear that words alone would not be enough.
Adam Green, co-founder of the political action group Progressive Change Campaign Committee, said that if the president's inaugural address does become a template for his second-term governing strategy, 'that will allow the president to win big victories and secure a legacy of bold progressive change that helped millions of Americans.'
'We hope he goes that route, and we will proudly rally to his side if he does,' Green said.
It remains to be seen how vigorously Obama pursues the agenda items he outlined in his inaugural address. White House officials have already struggled this week to back up his rhetoric with specific policy proposals
Still, people close to the president say he feels emboldened since winning re-election and wants to act quickly on progressive issues that eluded him during his first term. His supporters have also created a campaign spin-off organization to support his second-term agenda.
The outside group, Organizing for Action, will employ many of the same people who led Obama's two presidential bids and will have access to his campaign's voter and donor data. The new group is expected to focus on backing his positions in legislative battles, including gun control and immigration.
Some of what the president may pursue, particularly when it comes to climate change, may be through executive branch actions that don't need congressional approval.
The Pentagon this week acted on its own to lift a ban that kept female service members out of combat positions. And the Education Department unilaterally ordered schools to include students with disabilities in sports programs or provide equal alternative options.
White House officials are scouring rule books for other actions the West Wing and government agencies can take on their own.
---
Associated Press writers Josh Lederman contributed to this report.
Also Read
Friday, January 25, 2013
Canada's Flaherty less optimistic on Keystone prospects
DAVOS, Switzerland (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama's emphasis in his inaugural address on fighting climate change may not bode well for the contentious project to build the Keystone XL oil pipeline, Canada's finance minister said on Friday.
The Canadian government has been an enthusiastic supporter of TransCanada Corp's plan to build the $5.3 billion pipeline, which would open up a huge new market on the U.S. Gulf Coast for crude derived from oil sands in Alberta.
Washington faces a decision in the next few months on whether to approve the project, a possible cure for deeply discounted Canadian crude prices.
'I had reason for optimism before the election that the president would approve it, were he re-elected, but his speech the other day was not encouraging,' Finance Minister Jim Flaherty told Reuters at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
Obama promised in his address on Monday to combat climate change, citing recent fires, drought and storms, 'knowing that the failure to do so would betray our children and future generations'. The United States had to be a leader in sustainable energy, Obama said, putting the issue as a matter of national security and economic opportunity.
Environmental groups oppose Keystone XL, saying it would encourage more carbon-intensive tar sands development.
Surging output and tight export pipeline capacity has pulled the price of Canadian heavy crude in recent months to less than half the value of international benchmark Brent crude. This is hurting the public finances in Alberta, which warned this week of a C$6 billion ($6 billion) shortfall in revenue for its 2013-14 fiscal year as a result.
The Canadian economy, which depends heavily on energy and commodity prices, is also suffering, according to the central bank.
Flaherty pointed out that the energy industry was putting together alternative plans to move Alberta crude to new markets.
Some include Enbridge Inc's C$6 billion Northern gateway pipeline to the Pacific Coast, proposals to ship the oil to Quebec and further east, and even a scheme to build a railroad to Alaska, where the crude could be shipped to the oil port at Valdez.
'We will go wherever we have to go. We are going to create markets for Canadian commodities,' Flaherty said. Asked how fast such plans could be put in motion, he said: 'We'll do it quickly. We have major projects right now on our agenda and we will encourage them.'
TransCanada first applied to build Keystone XL in 2008. Obama rejected it last year, saying it needed a new route around the environmentally sensitive Sandhills region of Nebraska.
This week, Nebraska's governor approved the reworked path that skirts the area, and 53 U.S. senators wrote to Obama urging him to approve the project, citing energy security and jobs benefits. The state department, which is handling the issue because the pipeline would cross the Canadian border, said it will not make a ruling until at least the end of March.
(Reporting by Ben Hirschler; Writing by Jeffrey Jones; editing by David Stamp)
The Canadian government has been an enthusiastic supporter of TransCanada Corp's
Washington faces a decision in the next few months on whether to approve the project, a possible cure for deeply discounted Canadian crude prices.
'I had reason for optimism before the election that the president would approve it, were he re-elected, but his speech the other day was not encouraging,' Finance Minister Jim Flaherty told Reuters at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
Obama promised in his address on Monday to combat climate change, citing recent fires, drought and storms, 'knowing that the failure to do so would betray our children and future generations'. The United States had to be a leader in sustainable energy, Obama said, putting the issue as a matter of national security and economic opportunity.
Environmental groups oppose Keystone XL, saying it would encourage more carbon-intensive tar sands development.
Surging output and tight export pipeline capacity has pulled the price of Canadian heavy crude in recent months to less than half the value of international benchmark Brent crude. This is hurting the public finances in Alberta, which warned this week of a C$6 billion ($6 billion) shortfall in revenue for its 2013-14 fiscal year as a result.
The Canadian economy, which depends heavily on energy and commodity prices, is also suffering, according to the central bank.
Flaherty pointed out that the energy industry was putting together alternative plans to move Alberta crude to new markets.
Some include Enbridge Inc's
'We will go wherever we have to go. We are going to create markets for Canadian commodities,' Flaherty said. Asked how fast such plans could be put in motion, he said: 'We'll do it quickly. We have major projects right now on our agenda and we will encourage them.'
TransCanada first applied to build Keystone XL in 2008. Obama rejected it last year, saying it needed a new route around the environmentally sensitive Sandhills region of Nebraska.
This week, Nebraska's governor approved the reworked path that skirts the area, and 53 U.S. senators wrote to Obama urging him to approve the project, citing energy security and jobs benefits. The state department, which is handling the issue because the pipeline would cross the Canadian border, said it will not make a ruling until at least the end of March.
(Reporting by Ben Hirschler; Writing by Jeffrey Jones; editing by David Stamp)
Davos strives to make climate talk more than hot air
DAVOS, Switzerland (Reuters) - Climate change is back on the global agenda, with debate in the corridors at Davos given fresh impetus by U.S. President Barack Obama and U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon both highlighting it as top priority this week.
Yet business leaders are still struggling to find the economic incentives to change current practices.
The World Economic Forum (WEF) has not held back in its own assessment of the dangers, with former Mexican president Felipe Calderon warning of 'a climate crisis with potentially devastating impacts on the global economy'.
Christine Lagarde, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, summed it up for any Davos doubters: 'Unless we take action on climate change, future generations will be roasted, toasted, fried and grilled.'
There is a disconnect, however, between increasing evidence of extreme weather - from Superstorm Sandy in the United States in October to record heat in Australia this month - and the limited response from politicians and businesses.
In some cases the clash is stark, as highlighted on Friday when Greenpeace activists shut down a Shell gas station near the WEF meeting in protest at oil drilling in the Arctic that is made easier by a warmer world.
Many companies tout the opportunities presented by a shift to a low-carbon economy, yet the reality is that the continuing economic crisis has discouraged businesses and governments from developing a truly long-term view.
The rapid growth in shale gas - a greener alternative to coal when it is burned, although not when it leaks into the atmosphere - has also made renewables comparatively less attractive, adding to the challenge.
LACK OF URGENCY
The result is that while global investment in renewables is rising, the world still needs to spend $700 billion each year to curb its addiction to fossil fuels, according to a study issued by the WEF this week.
'There is a clear lack of urgency in the climate debate,' said Greenpeace Executive Director Kumi Naidoo. 'Big business is holding us back.'
Business, in turn, complains that the failure of governments to provide a clear regulatory framework limits its ability to plan for the future.
After past failures, governments aim to work out a new U.N. plan to address climate change in 2015 but it will only enter into force from 2020.
'Climate change is a long-term issue and it is not clear how it is going to play out or what the returns are going to be,' said PricewaterhouseCoopers International Chairman Dennis Nally.
'So CEOs have to measure how this investment stacks up vis a vis other opportunities that can generate clearer returns.'
In practice, only a quarter of CEOs surveyed by PwC said they planned to raise investment in climate risks as cash is rationed and allocated to projects with the most obvious near-term commercial returns.
That doesn't mean CEOs are not worried, according Fred Krupp, president of the Environmental Defense Fund, who said virtually every corporation was affected to some degree.
'There was mostly silence on climate change for the last two years at Davos,' Krupp said. 'But that has changed. The U.S. drought, especially, has grabbed people's attention here in Davos because that has had a real effect on prices.'
Also chiming with business leaders is Obama's argument that the United States cannot afford economically to fall behind in a global clean energy race dominated by countries like China, South Korea and Germany.
'The U.S. has to be among the leaders in this global discussion, so it is a positive development,' Andrew Liveris, CEO of Dow Chemical, said of Obama's inauguration speech, in which he made climate change a priority for his second term.
RECORD LOW CARBON PRICES
U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon came to Davos with a similar message, saying he was very encouraged by Obama's speech, while warning that climate change was approaching 'much, much faster than one would expect'.
For investors, however, the climate issue remains hard to assess, as shown when the price of European permits to emit carbon fell this week to a new low below 3 euros a tonne, providing minimal incentive for industry to change behavior.
Analysts estimate prices need to be between 20 and 50 euros to make utilities switch to lower-carbon generation.
The question is, when might that carbon risk turn and start to undermine the value of companies heavily reliant on fossil fuels?
The International Energy Agency warned last month that the world will burn around 1.2 billion more tonnes of coal per year by 2017 than it does today - equal to the current coal consumption of Russia and the United States combined.
And an analysis by Ecofys for Greenpeace, presented at Davos, found that just 14 carbon-intensive projects worldwide are set to increase global CO2 emissions by 20 percent, or 6 gigatonnes. They range from coal expansion in Asia to the tar sands of Canada.
When completed, these projects promise to lock in 'catastrophic' global warming, according to Greenpeace.
(Editing by David Holmes)
Yet business leaders are still struggling to find the economic incentives to change current practices.
The World Economic Forum (WEF) has not held back in its own assessment of the dangers, with former Mexican president Felipe Calderon warning of 'a climate crisis with potentially devastating impacts on the global economy'.
Christine Lagarde, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, summed it up for any Davos doubters: 'Unless we take action on climate change, future generations will be roasted, toasted, fried and grilled.'
There is a disconnect, however, between increasing evidence of extreme weather - from Superstorm Sandy in the United States in October to record heat in Australia this month - and the limited response from politicians and businesses.
In some cases the clash is stark, as highlighted on Friday when Greenpeace activists shut down a Shell gas station near the WEF meeting in protest at oil drilling in the Arctic that is made easier by a warmer world.
Many companies tout the opportunities presented by a shift to a low-carbon economy, yet the reality is that the continuing economic crisis has discouraged businesses and governments from developing a truly long-term view.
The rapid growth in shale gas - a greener alternative to coal when it is burned, although not when it leaks into the atmosphere - has also made renewables comparatively less attractive, adding to the challenge.
LACK OF URGENCY
The result is that while global investment in renewables is rising, the world still needs to spend $700 billion each year to curb its addiction to fossil fuels, according to a study issued by the WEF this week.
'There is a clear lack of urgency in the climate debate,' said Greenpeace Executive Director Kumi Naidoo. 'Big business is holding us back.'
Business, in turn, complains that the failure of governments to provide a clear regulatory framework limits its ability to plan for the future.
After past failures, governments aim to work out a new U.N. plan to address climate change in 2015 but it will only enter into force from 2020.
'Climate change is a long-term issue and it is not clear how it is going to play out or what the returns are going to be,' said PricewaterhouseCoopers International Chairman Dennis Nally.
'So CEOs have to measure how this investment stacks up vis a vis other opportunities that can generate clearer returns.'
In practice, only a quarter of CEOs surveyed by PwC said they planned to raise investment in climate risks as cash is rationed and allocated to projects with the most obvious near-term commercial returns.
That doesn't mean CEOs are not worried, according Fred Krupp, president of the Environmental Defense Fund, who said virtually every corporation was affected to some degree.
'There was mostly silence on climate change for the last two years at Davos,' Krupp said. 'But that has changed. The U.S. drought, especially, has grabbed people's attention here in Davos because that has had a real effect on prices.'
Also chiming with business leaders is Obama's argument that the United States cannot afford economically to fall behind in a global clean energy race dominated by countries like China, South Korea and Germany.
'The U.S. has to be among the leaders in this global discussion, so it is a positive development,' Andrew Liveris, CEO of Dow Chemical, said of Obama's inauguration speech, in which he made climate change a priority for his second term.
RECORD LOW CARBON PRICES
U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon came to Davos with a similar message, saying he was very encouraged by Obama's speech, while warning that climate change was approaching 'much, much faster than one would expect'.
For investors, however, the climate issue remains hard to assess, as shown when the price of European permits to emit carbon fell this week to a new low below 3 euros a tonne, providing minimal incentive for industry to change behavior.
Analysts estimate prices need to be between 20 and 50 euros to make utilities switch to lower-carbon generation.
The question is, when might that carbon risk turn and start to undermine the value of companies heavily reliant on fossil fuels?
The International Energy Agency warned last month that the world will burn around 1.2 billion more tonnes of coal per year by 2017 than it does today - equal to the current coal consumption of Russia and the United States combined.
And an analysis by Ecofys for Greenpeace, presented at Davos, found that just 14 carbon-intensive projects worldwide are set to increase global CO2 emissions by 20 percent, or 6 gigatonnes. They range from coal expansion in Asia to the tar sands of Canada.
When completed, these projects promise to lock in 'catastrophic' global warming, according to Greenpeace.
(Editing by David Holmes)
Thursday, January 24, 2013
Obama climate push to tie environment, jobs: White House adviser
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama will renew his push to spur investment in renewable energy projects that create jobs as a key part of his second-term strategy for tackling climate change, a top White House policy adviser said on Thursday.
This time around, though, Obama won't have the $90 billion in economic stimulus funds that his administration earlier pumped into clean energy and 'green jobs' projects.
Instead, Obama wants to see 'targeted and smart' investments in research and demonstration projects, and will also use the upcoming corporate tax reform process to try to 'level the playing field' for renewable forms of energy, said Brian Deese, deputy director of the National Economic Council.
Obama's first-term clean energy efforts were tarnished by failed loans to companies like Solyndra, the California solar panel maker that went bankrupt in 2011 after receiving more than $527 million in government backing.
But Obama has continued to argue that the United States cannot fall behind in a global clean energy race dominated by countries like China, South Korea and Germany, which heavily subsidize their domestic industries.
'Our political system and our private sector are never going to operate in the way that some of those countries operate to strategically support targeted industries and go all-in in that way,' Deese told a National Journal/The Atlantic event on energy innovation.
'The question for us is, how do we have an American-style approach that actually leverages the strengths that we have, while not ceding the race completely?' Deese said.
CREATING JOBS WHILE TACKLING CLIMATE ISSUES
Obama made a passionate pledge in his second inaugural address on Tuesday to combat climate change, citing recent fires, drought and storms, 'knowing that the failure to do so would betray our children and future generations.'
While those words attracted a lot of attention, what came next in the speech was also important, Deese said - Obama's contention that the nation must use more 'sustainable energy sources' to maintain its 'economic vitality' as well as to protect the environment. 'We cannot cede to other nations the technology that will power new jobs and new industries, we must claim its promise,' Obama said.
The White House is realistic about the slim chances of advancing comprehensive climate legislation in Congress, where many Republicans are staunchly opposed.
Instead, Deese said the administration will look for ways to use other types of legislation to accomplish clean energy goals, including upcoming efforts to overhaul the tax code.
'The way that corporate tax reform gets done could have a dramatic effect, long-term, about the incentives for investment in the United States for different types of technologies, renewable technologies,' said Deese, who works on tax policy and manufacturing issues.
Obama recently pushed for an extension of the wind production tax credit and other clean energy tax credits as part of the 'fiscal cliff' deal with Congress, Deese noted.
Tax breaks for traditional fossil fuel production have long been enshrined in the U.S. tax code, Deese said.
'One of the things the president has talked about is ... at a minimum, we should have a level playing field' for renewable energy, he said.
FISCAL, POLITICAL REALITIES
Obama also wants to explore 'targeted and smart investments to help catalyze renewable energy technologies' that can lead to more U.S. manufacturing jobs, said Deese, adding that projects to make buildings become more energy efficient is another area of promise.
He said Obama still would like to see Congress pass a 'clean energy standard' with annual targets for electricity from clean sources that would allow utilities to decide what type of renewable power source would best fill the quota.
Obama also may take actions that don't require congressional approval or spending, such as the increase in fuel economy standards set during his first term that will cut carbon pollution and fossil fuel use dramatically over 25 years.
'You saw the president not hesitate to use administrative action when he ran up against barriers in Congress,' Deese said.
(Editing by Ros Krasny and Doina Chiacu)
This time around, though, Obama won't have the $90 billion in economic stimulus funds that his administration earlier pumped into clean energy and 'green jobs' projects.
Instead, Obama wants to see 'targeted and smart' investments in research and demonstration projects, and will also use the upcoming corporate tax reform process to try to 'level the playing field' for renewable forms of energy, said Brian Deese, deputy director of the National Economic Council.
Obama's first-term clean energy efforts were tarnished by failed loans to companies like Solyndra, the California solar panel maker that went bankrupt in 2011 after receiving more than $527 million in government backing.
But Obama has continued to argue that the United States cannot fall behind in a global clean energy race dominated by countries like China, South Korea and Germany, which heavily subsidize their domestic industries.
'Our political system and our private sector are never going to operate in the way that some of those countries operate to strategically support targeted industries and go all-in in that way,' Deese told a National Journal/The Atlantic event on energy innovation.
'The question for us is, how do we have an American-style approach that actually leverages the strengths that we have, while not ceding the race completely?' Deese said.
CREATING JOBS WHILE TACKLING CLIMATE ISSUES
Obama made a passionate pledge in his second inaugural address on Tuesday to combat climate change, citing recent fires, drought and storms, 'knowing that the failure to do so would betray our children and future generations.'
While those words attracted a lot of attention, what came next in the speech was also important, Deese said - Obama's contention that the nation must use more 'sustainable energy sources' to maintain its 'economic vitality' as well as to protect the environment. 'We cannot cede to other nations the technology that will power new jobs and new industries, we must claim its promise,' Obama said.
The White House is realistic about the slim chances of advancing comprehensive climate legislation in Congress, where many Republicans are staunchly opposed.
Instead, Deese said the administration will look for ways to use other types of legislation to accomplish clean energy goals, including upcoming efforts to overhaul the tax code.
'The way that corporate tax reform gets done could have a dramatic effect, long-term, about the incentives for investment in the United States for different types of technologies, renewable technologies,' said Deese, who works on tax policy and manufacturing issues.
Obama recently pushed for an extension of the wind production tax credit and other clean energy tax credits as part of the 'fiscal cliff' deal with Congress, Deese noted.
Tax breaks for traditional fossil fuel production have long been enshrined in the U.S. tax code, Deese said.
'One of the things the president has talked about is ... at a minimum, we should have a level playing field' for renewable energy, he said.
FISCAL, POLITICAL REALITIES
Obama also wants to explore 'targeted and smart investments to help catalyze renewable energy technologies' that can lead to more U.S. manufacturing jobs, said Deese, adding that projects to make buildings become more energy efficient is another area of promise.
He said Obama still would like to see Congress pass a 'clean energy standard' with annual targets for electricity from clean sources that would allow utilities to decide what type of renewable power source would best fill the quota.
Obama also may take actions that don't require congressional approval or spending, such as the increase in fuel economy standards set during his first term that will cut carbon pollution and fossil fuel use dramatically over 25 years.
'You saw the president not hesitate to use administrative action when he ran up against barriers in Congress,' Deese said.
(Editing by Ros Krasny and Doina Chiacu)
Kerry: Climate change a 'life-threatening issue'
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Calling global climate change a 'life-threatening issue,' Secretary of State nominee John Kerry said Thursday that the United States must play a key role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to global warming.
Kerry, a Massachusetts Democrat, said at his confirmation hearing that the U.S. should pursue policies to boost clean energy and energy efficiency. In his state and others, such as California, 'the fastest growing sector of our economy is clean energy,' Kerry said. 'It's a job creator.'
Kerry, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has made climate change a central focus of his Senate career and led a failed effort in the Senate for a climate change bill in 2010.
Kerry told fellow senators he would be a 'passionate advocate' on the issue if confirmed as secretary of state, 'not based on ideology but based on facts, based on science. And I hope to sit with all of you and convince you that this $6 trillion (clean energy) market is worth millions of American jobs and leadership, and we better go after it.'
Failing to deal with climate change was more of a risk than addressing it head-on, Kerry said, citing damage caused by Superstorm Sandy, drought and wildfires. Congress is expected to approve more $50 billion in disaster relief for Sandy victims alone. The storm pounded Northeastern states in late October and has been blamed for 140 deaths.
'If we can't see the downside of spending that money' as a short-term fix after a disaster 'and risking lives for all the changes that are taking place - to agriculture, to our communities, the ocean and so forth, we're ignoring what science is telling us,' Kerry said.
On a related issue, Kerry said he has made no decision about the Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada. Environmental groups have been pressuring the Obama administration to reject the pipeline, saying it would carry 'dirty oil' that contributes to global warming.
Kerry said a review process is well underway at the State Department. The department has jurisdiction over the pipeline because it crosses an international border.
'It will not be long before that comes across my desk,' Kerry said. 'And at that time, I'll make the appropriate judgments about it.'
___
Follow Matthew Daly on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MatthewDalyWDC
3 On Your Side: Cold Weather Car Advice
s:fb='http://www.facebook.com/2008/fbml' xmlns:addthis='http://www.addthis.com/help/api-spec' > 3 On Your Side: Cold Weather Car Advice « CBS Philly
Buoyed by Obama, leaders press for climate action
DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) - Hurricanes, floods, droughts and a newly climate-conscious Barack Obama are helping boost efforts around the world to fight climate change.
Top political and financial leaders at the World Economic Forum in Davos say recent natural disasters, along with Obama's inauguration announcement this week that he's making the battle against rising temperatures a pillar of his second term, could rev up the glacially slow climate pact negotiations and revive fundraising for global action to cool the planet.
'Unless we take action on climate change, future generations will be roasted, toasted, fried and grilled,' International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde told participants at Davos.
The U.N.'s climate chief, Christiana Figueras, told The Associated Press in an interview Thursday that Obama's emphasis on climate 'definitely is a political boost.' She said Hurricane Sandy and drought in the Midwest last year helped push climate change back onto the U.S. political debate.
'We also need to see clearly much more engagement from the United States, we need to a confirmation from the new leadership in China that they remain on course and are willing to engage further. From the Europeans, we need to see that they also remain on course,' Figueras said. 'And then all of the emerging economies, in addition to China, need to begin to explore the opportunities that they have.'
The U.N. climate talks, now two decades in the making, have so far failed to reduce carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions that most scientists say are warming the Earth.
Participants at the Davos forum - which identifies extreme weather as one of the top three risks to the global economy - called for global action.
Until now, rich and poor countries have accused U.S. leaders of hampering the global fight against climate change, which scientists say is causing a rise in temperatures and sea levels, threatening island nations and other low-lying areas, and shifting weather patterns to produce more droughts, floods and devastating storms.
Figueras, the daughter of a former Costa Rican president, and Costa Rican President Laura Chinchilla both said their country could serve as an example.
'Costa Rica is already producing 90 percent of the energy we are consuming from renewable sources,' Chinchilla told AP. 'We are encouraging the policies of many different companies - many are already adopting the right policies. For example, in the agricultural sector, we already have coffee which is certified carbon-neutral coffee.'
European Union Climate Commissioner Connie Hedegaard called the battle against global warming the greatest economic challenge of this century.
Several CEOs of major banks and businesses said there have been robust discussions at Davos on potential private financing for 'green' technologies to produce cleaner sources of energy.
So far, nations have ponied up about $30 billion toward the $100 billion a year goal by 2020 set at Copenhagen's U.N. climate talks in 2009.
A U.N. climate conference in Doha, Qatar, agreed in December to extend the Kyoto Protocol, a treaty that limits the greenhouse gas output of some rich countries, and agreed to adopt a new global climate pact by 2015. But hopes for stronger U.S. leadership in the ongoing U.N. climate talks were dimmed when legislation to cap emissions stalled in Congress.
'We're coming out of two years of climate silence,' said Fred Krupp, president of the U.S.-based Environmental Defense Fund. 'The impacts of extreme weather are now affecting everybody in the wallet.'
Krupp said while no one is going to invest in unprofitable new technologies, a growing number of clean-energy investments are highly profitable.
Nations also agreed at the U.N. climate talks in Copenhagen to set a goal of limiting global warming to 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit). But because of inaction, Figueras said, the world is now on 'somewhere between a 4 and 6 degree (Celsius) trajectory.'
'But the door is not closed,' she quickly added. 'We have the technology, we have the capital. We have the possibility.'
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says one of his top hopes for 2013 is to reach a new agreement on climate change.
'Slowly but steadily, we are coming to realize the risks of a carbon-based economy,' he told the forum Thursday. 'Those supposedly longer-term issues are actually silent crises with us today: the death of children from preventable diseases; the melting of the polar ice caps because of climate change. ... Let not our inaction today lead to harsh judgment tomorrow.'
Prince Albert II of Monaco, whose foundation focuses on climate change and other environmental issues, said Obama's inauguration speech gave a welcome lift toward collective action.
'That can only be positive, because we need to have the U.S. on board,' he told the AP.
But Thomas Donohue, president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, said despite Obama's speech there would still be resistance.
'While the president and his colleagues will pursue what we believe is an aggressive climate change policy, they're not going to get it through the Congress,' Donahoe predicted. 'It's going to be done on a regulatory basis ... and that's going to create a different approach to dealing with this very important but controversial subject.'
___
Heilprin can be reached at www.twitter.com/JohnHeilprin
Top political and financial leaders at the World Economic Forum in Davos say recent natural disasters, along with Obama's inauguration announcement this week that he's making the battle against rising temperatures a pillar of his second term, could rev up the glacially slow climate pact negotiations and revive fundraising for global action to cool the planet.
'Unless we take action on climate change, future generations will be roasted, toasted, fried and grilled,' International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde told participants at Davos.
The U.N.'s climate chief, Christiana Figueras, told The Associated Press in an interview Thursday that Obama's emphasis on climate 'definitely is a political boost.' She said Hurricane Sandy and drought in the Midwest last year helped push climate change back onto the U.S. political debate.
'We also need to see clearly much more engagement from the United States, we need to a confirmation from the new leadership in China that they remain on course and are willing to engage further. From the Europeans, we need to see that they also remain on course,' Figueras said. 'And then all of the emerging economies, in addition to China, need to begin to explore the opportunities that they have.'
The U.N. climate talks, now two decades in the making, have so far failed to reduce carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions that most scientists say are warming the Earth.
Participants at the Davos forum - which identifies extreme weather as one of the top three risks to the global economy - called for global action.
Until now, rich and poor countries have accused U.S. leaders of hampering the global fight against climate change, which scientists say is causing a rise in temperatures and sea levels, threatening island nations and other low-lying areas, and shifting weather patterns to produce more droughts, floods and devastating storms.
Figueras, the daughter of a former Costa Rican president, and Costa Rican President Laura Chinchilla both said their country could serve as an example.
'Costa Rica is already producing 90 percent of the energy we are consuming from renewable sources,' Chinchilla told AP. 'We are encouraging the policies of many different companies - many are already adopting the right policies. For example, in the agricultural sector, we already have coffee which is certified carbon-neutral coffee.'
European Union Climate Commissioner Connie Hedegaard called the battle against global warming the greatest economic challenge of this century.
Several CEOs of major banks and businesses said there have been robust discussions at Davos on potential private financing for 'green' technologies to produce cleaner sources of energy.
So far, nations have ponied up about $30 billion toward the $100 billion a year goal by 2020 set at Copenhagen's U.N. climate talks in 2009.
A U.N. climate conference in Doha, Qatar, agreed in December to extend the Kyoto Protocol, a treaty that limits the greenhouse gas output of some rich countries, and agreed to adopt a new global climate pact by 2015. But hopes for stronger U.S. leadership in the ongoing U.N. climate talks were dimmed when legislation to cap emissions stalled in Congress.
'We're coming out of two years of climate silence,' said Fred Krupp, president of the U.S.-based Environmental Defense Fund. 'The impacts of extreme weather are now affecting everybody in the wallet.'
Krupp said while no one is going to invest in unprofitable new technologies, a growing number of clean-energy investments are highly profitable.
Nations also agreed at the U.N. climate talks in Copenhagen to set a goal of limiting global warming to 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit). But because of inaction, Figueras said, the world is now on 'somewhere between a 4 and 6 degree (Celsius) trajectory.'
'But the door is not closed,' she quickly added. 'We have the technology, we have the capital. We have the possibility.'
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says one of his top hopes for 2013 is to reach a new agreement on climate change.
'Slowly but steadily, we are coming to realize the risks of a carbon-based economy,' he told the forum Thursday. 'Those supposedly longer-term issues are actually silent crises with us today: the death of children from preventable diseases; the melting of the polar ice caps because of climate change. ... Let not our inaction today lead to harsh judgment tomorrow.'
Prince Albert II of Monaco, whose foundation focuses on climate change and other environmental issues, said Obama's inauguration speech gave a welcome lift toward collective action.
'That can only be positive, because we need to have the U.S. on board,' he told the AP.
But Thomas Donohue, president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, said despite Obama's speech there would still be resistance.
'While the president and his colleagues will pursue what we believe is an aggressive climate change policy, they're not going to get it through the Congress,' Donahoe predicted. 'It's going to be done on a regulatory basis ... and that's going to create a different approach to dealing with this very important but controversial subject.'
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Heilprin can be reached at www.twitter.com/JohnHeilprin
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