SocraticGadfly: Is Obama finally serious about climate change?

June 19, 2013

Is Obama finally serious about climate change?

Update, June 19: Stop me if you've heard this before. Dear Leader says he has a proposal.

"Bold action"? Puhleeze. DL has already pushed his administration's EPA to push back implementation dates for power plant emission regulations, among other things.

So, when White House flack Jennifer Zichal says:
“The E.P.A. has been working very hard on rules that focus specifically on greenhouse gases from the coal sector,” Ms. Zichal said. “They’re doing a lot of important work in that space.”
Uhh, yeah, but your boss keeps undercutting it. Fortunately (but sadly) we non-Obamiacs know that.

And, speaking of Obamiacs, back to the original post, inspired by a huge, blind Obamiac — Jon Chait.

Chait, in talking in May about Obama's nominees for the DC Court of Appeals, and claiming they're part of a grander strategy, says DL is, this time, Matt Cooper double-secret serious about doing something about climate change.

And, Obama's political apparatus, Organizing for Action, is doing "let's focus on climate change actions" awareness events, or whatever, around the country.

That said, my "whatever" should give you an idea of what I think about this as reality vs. political theater or anything else.

First, per Glenn Greenwald's take (and that of many others to whom he links) on Obama's "let's end the War on Terror someday, but not if it inconveniences my presidential powers" speech of last week, Chait is one of those neoliberal Obamiacs always ready to see the best in Dear Leader. That's exemplified here by his ludicrous claim that Harry Reid, if the Senate GOP rejects all three of Obama's DC Court nominees, will finally, finally, end the filibuster. Third time is the Matthew Cooper double super secret charm, eh, Jon?

Even before this piece, and Glenn's, I had seen enough vapid blatherings from Chait, like his "one of the greatest presidents in history" piece last year, to know that he's once again over the top.

The reality? His speech last week left the door open to expanding drone killings. (Always, always, on a big issue like this, among American big media, wait until the folks at McClatchy weigh in, just like in this case.) Real liberals, not Obamiacs, who remember McClatchy's stellar coverage of the run-up to the invasion of Iraq should remember that.

As for OFA? First, it's going to spend its political capital and focus on Obamacare.

Second, speaking of political capital, OFA will focus on being as vague as Dear Leader himself on drone warfare while trying to still score political points. That's part of why it's tailoring its pitch to the profile of each Congressional district.

Third, it's about Dear Leader's legacy as much as anything.

So, the answer is ... an answer that will satisfy true believer Obamiacs and dishearten those further left:

"Obama is just as serious about addressing climate change as he is about ending drone warfare."

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