The Green(er) GOP

Originally published in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram

By GLENN HUROWITZ
Special to the Star-Telegram

With John McCain all but assured of the Republican nomination, things are looking up for the planet.

Since 2000, McCain has been a consistent advocate of America's taking action to solve the climate crisis. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama favor even bolder action.

But the Republican results make one thing clear: The debate in this country about global warming will no longer be about whether it exists or whether America should do anything about it, but rather how much we should do, and how quickly.

Even Mike Huckabee, despite the contempt in which he apparently holds most science, favors cutting greenhouse gas emissions and raising fuel efficiency standards for cars and trucks.

"We can't justify destroying a planet that doesn't belong to us, and if we believe that God did create this world for our pleasure and wants us to enjoy it, then all the more reason that we should take care of it," he told Grist magazine.

The Republicans who tried to out-conservative their opponents by presenting themselves as the most anti-green candidate have fallen by the wayside. Fred Thompson started his campaign by mocking scientific evidence of global warming and then said he would consider allowing oil drilling in the Everglades. That earned an attack from Mitt Romney, who said, "There are certain places in America that are national treasures, and the Everglades is one of those."

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