The First 100 Days

What do you want to see from Obama regarding the environment during his first 100 days on the job?  In other words, how do you believe he should set the tone for the next 4 years?

I read through the green stimulus component, and it's impressive, but fails to draw in the middle class with direct incentives, and seems to lack something of the bold flourish I guess I'm looking for here.  Don't get me wrong, I have faith that Obama will be able to sell his program, and the package he's pulled together is a fantastic start, absolutely!  Maybe the problem is that Clinton, even with Gore aboard, didn't accomplish much of what I'd hoped for environmentally, and I've obviously been pacing the walls these last 8 years, so may be a bit impatient. In fact, I know I am!

That said, in the first 100 days I want to see some sort of gesture that speaks to environmentalists, the general public and the world, that demonstrates his intent beyond this stimulus package.  I'll let you know if and when he accomplishes this task soon enough.  Since Obama is hitting the ground running I may not have to wait 100 days.

The news of Obama's accomplishments and missteps will be presented en masse everywhere, but The Huffington Post has posted this site:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/news/100-days

Not exclusively enivironmentally oriented, but I know that kind of material will be included in the mix, and the site is worth a look periodically anyhow.  For instance, right now there's a vote going on for the favorite green roof provided by readers.  Each includes a brief description, and it was interesting to see the mix and interesting that Huffington chose to include this feature on the site.

After 8 years of dragging his knuckles on the pavement while the situation worsened, Obama has shown leadership that just weeks ago was almost unimaginable for Washington.  "The days of Washington dragging its heels are over. My administration will not deny facts we will be guided by them," said Obama.  I also loved Yvo de Boer's synergy comments, which may draw boos from the skeptical crowd but seems to make oh so much sense.

Only a week deep and yet oh so much accomplished. 

“A Roadmap for U.S.-China Cooperation on Energy and Climate Change?” This is the title of 1 of 2 newly-released reports that propose ways for President Obama and Chinese leaders to conduct discussions on curbing emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases linked to rising temperatures. The report was prepared by a committee led by now Secretary of Energy Steven Chu.

The other report, by Brooks fellows David B. Sandalow and Kenneth G. Lieberthal, offers a "menu" on how to build political support in both countries.

Is this good news or what?  Secretary of State Clinton could visit China in the next 30 days, and it's looking like this topic will be a primary point of discussion among the two nations.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/05/world/asia/05china.html?_r=3

President Obama gave a great speech the other night.  Below are articles from the NY Times and the Wall Street Journal that help those of us more deeply immersed in environmental issues to help keep our finger on the pulse of what American media is expressing about the Presidents policies.

It was a smooth pitch, deemphasizing the high financial cost of action, and stressing how stepping up to meet our energy needs in a more environmentally appropriate fashion will help us to compete in the worldwide market and put ourselves back on top in several fields.  Approval ratings continue to be high, the Republican response was, well, a weak effort, and Obama and Democrats seem poised to set America on the road to economic and environmental recovery.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/26/opinion/26thu1.html?_r=1

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123561433557778201.html

Sometimes the media gets it right, as in this USA Today piece by Traci Watson.

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/science/environment/2009-03-05-greenagenda_N.htm

The sidebar under "The President's Agenda" is nicely presented, I believe.

Hang on to your hats, here we go!  If you don't want to witness the barage of media assessments on President Obama's first 100 days in office, back away from the TV, radio and computer.  I believe Wednesday is "the day," just thought I'd resurrect this thread now so all here can watch for posts on their favorite sites and we can compare notes. A few sites of interest I've located already:

I'll withhold my opinion for now, but it would be nice to get a good dialogue going on this topic later this week, when the words begin flying.

Dana generously provided this link on the Yahoo Q&A site:

http://climateprogress.org/2009/04/26/the-green-fdr-obama-first-100-days/

The link provides a nickname that could stick, labeling Obama as a candidate for the "green FDR" label. 

A few other assessments:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/arianna-huffington/obamas-first-100-days-the_b_191831.html

Huffington doesn't put Obama's environmental achievements in either the plus or the minus side -- she sidesteps them completely -- but other notables such as Gary Hart and Madeline Albright offer their assessments on the Huffington site as well.  Albright's comments were nicely presented.  She noted, "he has taken steps to restore America's reputation as a leader on the environment and international law."  Joe Romm, Dave Burdick and Jeff Biggers weigh in under the "Environment & Climate Change" category.  Good reads all.

Obama's just getting rolling, but his initial efforts have impressed me, and I'm hoping that America will keep him on as a 2 term President so he can really have some elbow room.