Californians Blaze Bipartisan National & Global Path to Clean Energy Future

Last week -- on anything to do with climate and energy -- it was all California, all the time. The state emerged in full view as the nation's leading source of leadership and light on global warming solutions. The best part is that California's ascendancy is both bipartisan and global.

The most visible demonstration of this was last week's Governors' Global Climate Summit, held in Los Angeles. Hosted by Republican Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, it first grabbed international headlines for the videotaped message President-elect Barack Obama delivered there. He declared:

My presidency will mark a new chapter in America’s leadership on climate change.

In attendance at the summit were representatives from around the world, including Guangsheng Gao, the director general of the climate change office in China's National Development Reform Commission. Gao's boss reports directly to the Premier. It seemed like a warm-up for high-level multi-lateral discussions between the US and China, Brazil, India and others once Obama takes office. Indeed, Terry Tamminen, Schwarzenegger's environment adviser and the Summit's mastermind, called the gathering a mini-United Nations, a table-setter for the global climate meetings next month in Poznan and next year in Copenhagen. (Full record of proceedings here.)

At the same time across the country in Washington, Californians were busy, too, and by the end of the week had earned a hugely significant political victory. Representative Henry Waxman of California deposed John Dingell for the chairmanship of the most important committee in all of Congress: the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.

The visual symbolism of the victory was enormous, too. There was the aging Dingell, long the protector of the collapsing auto industry, confined to a wheelchair -- recovering from knee surgery -- as Waxman's inexorable campaign gathered steam. The old and crippled dinosaur from Michigan succumbed to the brilliant star from California, just as an auto industry bailout was being rejected, for now, in Washington.

This was no longer politics-as-usual. This was no longer business-as-usual.

Behind the scenes, another Californian -- House Speaker Nancy Pelosi -- lent her support silently to Waxman and made sure nothing went awry with the carefully orchestrated coup. To round out the victory, Philip Schiliro, a top aide to Mr. Waxman, was named by Obama to be the White House director of Congressional relations, creating a direct line of communication to the Oval office.

Then, as if on cue, another Californian, Senator Barbara Boxer, announced she would be introducing two pieces of climate legislation into the next session of Congress. The first would provide $15 billion a year to support clean energy innovation and provide a stimulus for economic recovery. The second bill, by amending the Clean Air Act, would direct the U.S. EPA to develop a carbon cap-and-trade system.

And that's still not all for California. Waiting in the wings is Mary Nichols, chair of California's Air Resources Board, widely regarded as a top contender to be the next EPA Administrator. She presided over the signing ceremony at the end of the Governor's Global Climate Summit of a feel-good declaration, signed by 11 governors representing both political parties, promising cooperation on climate solutions.

Aside from Schwarzenegger, most remarkable among the attending governors was another Republican, Charlie Crist of Florida. An Action Team working for him had just completed a climate plan of action that promises to reduce emissions 33% below 1990 levels by 2025 and at the same time to bring $28 billion in net economic benefits to the Florida economy.

It sure looked like these bi-coastal Republicans -- Crist and Schwarzenegger -- were defining a new center for their party with nary a peep about drilling. The oil wing of their party was temporarily banished, while the Democrats did their part by defanging the old dog Dingell who's been protecting the auto industry for way too long.

With the oil and auto industries both out in the wilderness last week, it looked like there was suddenly room for a clean energy economy to stake a big claim to the future.

If anybody is worried that America is going to get too much of California, consider this. It's got an economy that among the countries of the world, is sixth or seventh in size, just behind France last I checked. And among US states, it has the biggest economy, bar none, and is the best at energy matters.

From 1972 to 2006, California saved $56 billion in electricity costs; created 1.5 million full-time jobs in low-carbon sectors; and added $45 billion in payroll. All from energy efficiency improvements alone. If the federal government is looking for expertise on how to create jobs, save energy and stimulate the economy, it's in the right place. Not to mention AB32 and increased gas mileage standards.

Time for a sing-along as we head into Thanksgiving?

All the leaves are brown (the leaves are brown)
And the sky is grey (and the sky is grey).....

California dreamin (California dreamin)
On such a winter's day.

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