The Sorry State of the Union
On this edition of Earthbeat we delve deep into President Bush's State of the Union. After six years in office, the President finally used the words "climate change" in a state of the union speech.
Joining host Daphne Wysham in our Washington, DC studios is John Coequyt, an energy policy analyst for Greenpeace's Global Warming Campaign and Tyson Slocum, the director of Public Citizen's energy program. To read Tyson's response to Bush's state of the union speech, click here. To review Greenpeace's alternative energy strategy click here.
Many environmentalists believe the President's hand was forced by public opinon, recent climate events, and the upcoming UN report on climate change. Discussing the UN report and the politics surrounding climate change is Dan Becker, the director of the Sierra Club's Global Warming Program, and from his Harvard University office, Paul Epstein, the associate director of the Center for Health and the Global Environment.
Two specific plans to reduce greenhouse gases are cap-and-trade programs and a carbon tax. Speaking from his Manhattan office, economist Charles Komanoff discusses why he recently co-founded the Carbon Tax Center; and on the West Coast, Jane Williams discusses the problems inherent in a cap-and-trade program. Williams is the director of California Communities Against Toxics.
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