Sylvain’s Panama Adventure

Chris Mooney, someone I have a lot of respect for, just wrote a blog post explaining the tensions over at DeSmogBlog regarding Barack Obama. Here’s an excerpt:

There’s a big gap between what science says the climate needs, and what politics can presently deliver. Some Democrats are promising big–far beyond what’s currently possible politically–and yet even they may not be aiming high enough in a scientific sense. And so of course the Democrats, to say nothing of the Republicans, have some weak spots on the issue.

Obama included.

But as someone who worked in Washington, D.C., for a number of years, what all of this says to me is that it’s a terrible strategy to attack the Democratic candidates from the left right now over global warming–in other words, to argue that they’re not going far enough.

True, this approach might push some candidates further to the left in the context of the primaries, when they have to appeal to voters from their own parties. But the best candidate will still have to go into a general election, which means facing mainstream political reality in America. And while we’ve come a long way in the U.S. in terms of what’s politically feasible on global warming–for instance, I’d wager that 2003’s failed McCain-Liberman bill could now pass–we still can’t demand that our politicians move too far too fast.

If we do, we run the risk of damaging the candidate or candidate who could be elected and prove a true climate champion. And that’s just not worth it.

OK, Ill buy that. It’s a very well thought through and reasonable argument. I will swallow my dissatisfaction with Obama’s current plan and hope that he can live up to the expectations if he gets elected.

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