Would John McCain be a Green President?
June 2, 2008 by Peggy
First off, I’m not a political writer. I’m also not a Republican. I’m not a Democrat either. Personally, I would have loved for there to be a really kick-ass, third-party candidate getting lots of attention. But that isn’t happening either.
So, what to do in November if you live in the United States?
I believe that the most important thing you can do is educate yourself about your choices. And vote!
While I’m not 100% convinced that John McCain would be a green President, I think he’s paying more attention than others in his party have in the 
past. McCain opposes drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and he’s been very critical of Bush’s lack of environmental leadership.
Here’s an excerpt from McCain’s recent speech on climate change in Portland, Oregon. You can read the whole speech with the link, but I picked this part because I think it shows that he does believe global warming is real.
“Some of the most compelling evidence of global warming comes to us from NASA. No longer do we need to rely on guesswork and computer modeling, because satellite images reveal a dramatic disappearance of glaciers, Antarctic ice shelves and polar ice sheets. And I’ve seen some of this evidence up close. A few years ago I traveled to the area of Svalbard, Norway, a group of islands in the Arctic Ocean. I was shown the southernmost point where a glacier had reached twenty years earlier. From there, we had to venture northward up the fjord to see where that same glacier ends today — because all the rest has melted. On a trip to Alaska, I heard about a national park visitor’s center that was built to offer a picture-perfect view of a large glacier. Problem is, the glacier is gone. A work of nature that took ages to form had melted away in a matter of decades.
Our scientists have also seen and measured reduced snowpack, with earlier runoffs in the Pacific Northwest and elsewhere. We have seen sustained drought in the Southwest, and across the world average temperatures that seem to reach new records every few years. We have seen a higher incidence of extreme weather events. In the frozen wilds of Alaska, the Arctic, Antarctic, and elsewhere, wildlife biologists have noted sudden changes in animal migration patterns, a loss of their habitat, a rise in sea levels. And you would think that if the polar bears, walruses, and sea birds have the good sense to respond to new conditions and new dangers, then humanity can respond as well.”
To learn more, I highly recommend the Grist candidate profiles. Also, check out Time’s article: How Green is John McCain?
Do you think John McCain is sincere in his green efforts?
Image used with permission: Newscom
I think he’s sincere. He seems to be sincere in the other things he says and does.
Are you kidding me ?! If you look at the League of Conservation Voters 2007 score sheet Clinton scores 73%, Obama 67% and McCain scored 0%. I don’t think he even showed up for any of the important votes. I haven’t checked NRDC or Sierra Club, but my guess would be that they won’t be endorsing McCain for president. Please check out the facts. My dad and stepfather, both Vietnam vets are not voting for McCain. Alright, I’ll get off my soapbox.
Diana: I think who the League of Conservation is backing probably has a lot to do with the political party they’re already affiliated with.
Yes, your dad and stepfather have the right to vote for whomever they choose, but if that’s what we’re measuring McCain’s success by, I’m sure we could find just as many Vietnam Vets that are voting for him.
Well, Grist doesn’t make him look all that green. Frankly, although it sounds odd maybe coming from me, environment is one of my lesser concerns when it comes to voting. The government can help some with eco issues, but so can a large group of individuals – we don’t need policy to create huge eco changes; yeah, it’d be nice to have more gov support, but I’m not holding my breath. I’m more concerned with women’s rights and health care when it comes to voting.
Diana, this post isn’t meant as an endorsement of McCain. I’m just throwing out the question: Would McCain be a Green President? Thanks for your input.
You may not remember GW Bush’s campaign promises when running against Al Gore, but he was explicit in promises to regulate Carbon dioxide emissions. First, President Bush reneged on these promises. Next, his administration explicitly opposed the Kyoto Protocol. Scientists, environmental groups and leaders from across the world were quick to condemn these twin decisions, which have put a cloud over the treaty’s future. The rating that the League of Conservation Voters gives is based on voting records in the Senators history, it is not subjective, it is simply their voting record. Campaign promises are easy to make, so rather than listen to that, it is recommended that you look at the record of what they have done. Clinton and Obama have acted on their beliefs about climate change, while McCain has only talked about it.
Thanks for all the comments everyone.
I do plan on talking about either Obama or Clinton, but I’m still waiting to see which one gets the nomination. I don’t want to assume.
FYI: The League of Conservation voters has this on their website regarding McCain:
“In fact, among the Republicans running for president, Sen. McCain holds the distinction of being the only candidate to make global warming a part of his campaign agenda and to regularly address it on the campaign trail. Sen. McCain has been a leader in the U.S. Senate on climate issues for several years.”
http://lcv.org/voterguide/
I know his voting record isn’t perfect at all, but he has acknowledged the environmental problem when many others in his party were still saying it was a hoax.
Please look for an Obama post in a few days. : )