President Obama delivers his SOTU tomorrow night
It is what one could call the “billion dollar question” right now. Will President Barack Obama use his State of the Union address tomorrow to tout clean energy legislation in some form, whether it be stand-alone, or as part of a larger jobs bill.
Devoting part of his most important speech would remind the country that the president is serious about moving away from foreign oil – and the $1 billion spent overseas each day – while also creating the jobs he has been working to create since his first day in office.
The U.S. economy is struggling. That is why Congressional action is needed more than ever. Investments in clean energy, coupled with clear signals of the costs of carbon pollution, will spur growth in industries like wind energy, which already saw a 39 percent increase last year. Most importantly, it would put people back to work.
The ability of clean energy to create jobs has sparked speculation that there will be investments in the “jobs bill” being formulated in Congress for these industries. Senator John Kerry made clear today that any actions in that bill would not lessen the need for comprehensive legislation.
Kerry told the New York Times that Obama should, “lay the prestige of the presidency on the line,” for clean energy in his State of the Union speech. He was joined by the Youth Climate Movement, which titled its speech preview, “State of the Union: Clean Energy or Bust.”
Said Rep. Jay Inslee to the Times: “Some folks, I don’t think are listening to people on the ground — this is a battle between public sentiment and special interests,” said Rep. Jay Inslee (D-Wash.), an ardent supporter of the climate change bill. “Over time, the public sentiment has started to prevail.”
Poll after poll after poll has shown broad support for comprehensive clean energy and climate legislation. The jobs that come with the investments are the long-lasting, skilled positions that can help rebuild America’s economy. Put simply, they are exactly the message the president is said to want to push tomorrow.
Will it be the one we hear?
