Originally posted at the Breakthrough Institute
The 'interwebs' are abuzz today with the surprise announcement that moderate Republican Senator Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania is switching parties and plans to run as a Democrat when he makes his 2010 re-election bid.
The move is clearly a powerful symbol of how far to the right the Republican Party has moved in recent years. What it means for policy is less clear.
Senator Specter's membership in the Democrat ranks would nominally give the party the sixty votes necessary to overcome the near-constant threat of Republican filibuster in the Senate (assuming Democrat Al Franken wins the contested court battle that will decide Minnesota's senate seat). That has prompted a sudden burst of optimism about the prospects of contentious Democratic policy priorities, including health care reform and climate change legislation.
ClimateProgress's Joe Romm blithely asserts, for example, that Senator Specter's new party allegiance will mean he'll change his stance on climate legislation. "One assumes that if he is going to seriously run as a Democrat, he'll support an energy and climate bill," Romm wrote today.
More astute observers, however, quickly recognize that Senator Specter's move changes little in the landscape of climate politics. For serious advocates of urgently needed and effective climate legislation, it's not hard to see why. We simply have to ask ourselves: does the "D" next to this free-thinking Senator's name suddenly change his vote on climate legislation? Of course not.
Senator Specter was clear today that he "will not be an automatic 60th vote for cloture."
"My change in party affiliation does not mean that I will be a party-line voter any more for the Democrats that I have been for the Republicans," the Senator said at his press announcement this morning.
And as he left the podium today at a press conference that aired on MSNBC, Specter answered a question about climate policy by saying his views on a climate bill are unchanged.
The reality is, Senator Specter has always been (and still remains) a crucial swing vote necessary to get to any climate bill to the critical 60-vote threshold in the Senate.
The challenge ahead for climate advocates remains clear and the same today as it was yesterday: we urgently need a proactive strategy to address the substantive concerns of moderate 'Heartland' Democratic Senators (who's ranks are now one vote larger) and forge a new path forward to consensus on effective climate policy [see "The Sherrod Brown Test" for more on what that will take].
Like the other moderate Democrats he now joins, Senator Specter has long voiced concerns that climate legislation, if done poorly, would damage the already fragile manufacturing-based economy of Pennsylvania. He voiced support for action on climate change and even authored a bill with Senator Jeff Bingaman (D-NM). However, Senator Specter's support for climate policy has always required explicit and transparent cost containment provisions to limit the price of carbon and the impacts on his states' energy prices. Senator Specter voted against the McCain-Lieberman climate bill twice in the past and helped deny an up-or-down vote on the Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act last summer (effectively killing the legislation).
Democrat or Republican, Senator Specter remains an independent thinker and a difficult but critical swing vote on climate legislation. It will be no easier to meet his concerns than it will the other critical swing Democrats in the Senate. But his announcement today makes it all the more critical that climate advocates proactively work to craft legislation that meets the concerns of moderates like Specter while retaining the capacity to effectively drive the rapid transition to a clean and prosperous energy economy.
We've been working on precisely that challenge for years here at the Breakthrough Institute, and we remain committed to working with Senator Specter (and the rest of his new colleagues in the Democratic Party) to find climate solutions that minimize impacts on Pennsylvania and the manufacturing Heartland of America, create a prosperous clean energy economy, and invest in the new clean energy technologies and industries of the future.
Related posts at the Breakthrough Institute:
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Senator Specter Changes Parties, Doesn't Change Climate Politics
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Senator Specter Kicks Off Nationwide Town Hall on Clean Energy Future, Cong. Cao Event Streams Live Today
Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA) joined students from Drexel University, community members and business leaders for a discussion on tackling climate change and seizing the opportunities of the new energy economy this Monday in Philadelphia.
The event kicked off a series of 103 town hall-style forums, part of a nationwide Town Hall on the clean energy future sponsored by Focus the Nation, a clean energy youth empowerment group based in Portland, OR.
The Philadelphia town hall even featured presentations from Audrey Zibelman, CEO of Viridity Energy, a cutting edge carbon and energy management firm, representatives of the Philadelphia department of sustainability, Senator Specter and others. Afterwards, a select group of participants, students and community members from the Philadelphia area, had a closed-door meeting with one of Specter's advisers on energy and environment issues, James Decker, to continue a conversation about clean energy solutions.
Senator Specter may be the most crucial swing vote in the Senate as Congressional leaders gear up for a national debate on climate and clean energy legislation this year. As Newsweek recently noted:
"His colleagues may wince, but for reasons of math Specter now finds himself the most sought-after, and sucked-up-to, member of the Senate. He could wind up casting the deciding vote on major issues, including health-care and energy reform. Here's why: Senate rules say the Democrats need 60 votes to keep Republicans from filibustering. Even if Al Franken is (finally) seated, they're one maddening vote shy. They'll need a Republican defector, not an easy thing to get. On big votes, leaders bully members into standing with the party, and senators, fearing retaliation, usually comply.""Sen. Specter's participation in the launch of this national discussion epitomizes the opportunity America has to redefine the kind of leadership it will take to keep our country at the forefront of building the clean energy future," said Garett Brennan, executive director of Focus the Nation. "This is our window to shift our economy from crisis to opportunity. Legislators need to hear that serious investment in green jobs and affordable clean energy isn't bold to their constituents at all. It's common sense. It's what they want and it's what our economy needs."
More than 100 similar events are occurring nationwide this week, including a town hall with Congressman Joseph Cao of Louisiana that will be streamed live from New Orleans at focusthenation.org today at 6:00pm ET.
The nationwide Focus the Nation Town Halls are largely being organized by hundreds of youth who are driving today's clean energy movement. The success of the events is a result of multi-sector and multi-generational partnerships that they are building in their communities.
"It's usually our leaders who call town halls on pressing issues," said Lindsey Berger, an organizer at Missouri State University. "This time we're inviting them to our town halls because our generation knows we don't have time to wait to build a clean energy future."
On the national level, many discussions will center on the new draft climate and energy bill released by Reps. Henry Waxman (D-CA) and Edward Markey (D-MA) that is the first to set science-based targets to cut global warming pollution. On the international level, the Focus the Nation Town Halls will set the stage American leadership at the December 2009 climate treaty negotiations in Copenhagen, Denmark. At the local level, the Town Hall discussions will cover a range of topics representing sectors like agriculture, energy, building, transportation and urban planning and will help each community identify where it sits on the trajectory toward a clean and prosperous energy future.
The Town Halls are also catalysts for further action. Organizers and participants will begin charting community action plans unique to each locality that will be implemented with Focus the Nation's support over the coming year. Those plans will focus on overcoming roadblocks, sharing solutions from other regions of the country and identifying opportunities to accelerate momentum along the clean energy trajectory.
The events are part of a growing clean energy movement that includes Focus the Nation and partner groups such as 1Sky, Energy Action Coalition, Green For All and 350.org. Together, these motivated leaders are mobilizing youth, business leaders, elected officials and other sectors to create climate and energy solutions within a necessarily rapid time frame.
International climate experts say that the next few years is the window for averting irretrievable climate disruption. "If there's no action before 2012, that's too late. What we do in the next two to three years will determine our future. This is the defining moment," Dr. Rajendra Pachauri, head of the international panel of the world's top climate scientists, famously warned. That was in 2007.
Attend a Town Hall near you and help Focus the Nation: www.FocusTheNation.org Read more!
Monday, April 13, 2009
Youth Engage Members of Congress, Local Officials in 103 Town Halls Nationwide to Build Clean Energy Future
April 13, 2009 - Young leaders organized by Focus the Nation are holding an unprecedented 103 Town Halls across the country beginning today and throughout this week’s Congressional recess to engage Congressional representatives, mayors and other elected officials in accelerating America’s transition to a clean energy future.
50 members of Congress have confirmed their participation in the Nationwide Town Hall on America's Clean Energy Future, along with dozens of city and state elected leaders. The events are being held during the Congressional spring recess to allow maximum participation.
Sen. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania is kicking off the week today, at a 2 p.m. appearance at a Philadelphia Town Hall at Drexel University [Event details: http://www.focusthenation.org]. Sen. Christopher Dodd of Connecticut is confirmed for Apr. 16 at Central Connecticut State University in New Britain. The majority of the Town Halls, including one with Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island, will take place on Apr. 18. A full map and list of local events and details is available at www.focusthenation.org/map.
“Sen. Specter’s participation in the launch of this national discussion epitomizes the opportunity America has to redefine the kind of leadership it will take to keep our country at the forefront of building the clean energy future,” said Garett Brennan, executive director of Focus the Nation. “This is our window to shift our economy from crisis to opportunity. Legislators need to hear that serious investment in green jobs and affordable clean energy isn’t bold to their constituents at all. It’s common sense. It's what they want and it’s what our economy needs.”
The Town Halls are largely being organized by hundreds of youth who are driving today’s clean energy movement. The success of the events is a result of multi-sector and multi-generational partnerships that they are building in their communities.
“It’s usually our leaders who call town halls on pressing issues,” said Lindsey Berger, an organizer at Missouri State University. “This time we’re inviting them to our Town Halls because our generation knows we don’t have time to wait to build a clean energy future.”
On the national level, many discussions will center on the new draft climate and energy
bill released by Reps. Waxman and Markey that is the first to set science-based targets to cut global warming pollution. On the international level, the Town Halls will set the stage for ensuring America’s leadership at the December 2009 climate treaty negotiations in Copenhagen, Denmark. At the local level, the Town Hall discussions will cover a range of topics representing sectors like agriculture, energy, building, transportation and urban planning that will help each community identify where it sits on the trajectory toward a clean energy future.
The Town Halls are also catalysts for further action. Organizers and participants will begin charting community action plans unique to each locality that will be implemented with Focus the Nation’s support over the coming year. Those plans will focus on overcoming roadblocks, sharing solutions from other regions of the country and identifying opportunities to accelerate momentum along the clean energy trajectory.
The events are part of a growing clean energy movement that includes Focus the Nation and partner groups such as 1Sky, Energy Action Coalition, Green For All and 350.org. Together, these motivated leaders are mobilizing youth, business leaders, elected officials and other sectors to create climate and energy solutions within a necessarily rapid time frame.
International climate experts say that the next few years is the window for averting irretrievable climate disruption. “If there's no action before 2012, that's too late. What we do in the next two to three years will determine our future. This is the defining moment,” Dr. Rajendra Pachauri, head of the international panel of the world’s top climate scientists, famously warned – in 2007.
Local Media: To localize this story, please visit www.focusthenation.org/map to see a list of top events in your area and access contact information for interviews.
For interviews with Focus the Nation Executive Director Garett Brennan and multi-generational Town Hall organizers across the country, please call Diane Dulken, 503-936-6323.
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Through education, engagement and action, Focus the Nation empowers today’s young leaders to accelerate the transition to a just and prosperous clean energy future. Focus the Nation is headquartered in Portland, Oregon. For more information, visit www.focusthenation.org.
