The first State of the Union of Obama’s second term was widely anticipated. He can’t seek re-election, he now has experience, he understands futility of expecting cooperation from Republicans, he has four years to act. So what is he going to do with his final term? In particular, is Obama going to act on climate change?
The Guardian has a good summary of the speech. Yes – thank goodness – Obama is talking the talk:
“For the sake of our children and our future, we must do more to combat climate change.
Yes, it’s true that no single event makes a trend. But the fact is, the 12 hottest years on record have all come in the last 15. Heat waves, droughts, wildfires, and floods – all are now more frequent and intense. We can choose to believe that superstorm Sandy, and the most severe drought in decades, and the worst wildfires some states have ever seen were all just a freak coincidence. Or we can choose to believe in the overwhelming judgement of science – and act before it’s too late,” he said.
“If Congress won’t act soon to protect future generations, I will. I will direct my cabinet to come up with executive actions we can take, now and in the future, to reduce pollution, prepare our communities for the consequences of climate change, and speed the transition to more sustainable sources of energy.
How soon is soon? Obama can’t seriously expect anything useful to come out of the broken facade that is Congress. He should start now, act now, there is no time to waste. Please Mr President – turn your words into actions.
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