Obama Calls On Senate For Environmental Action

Thu. July 02, 2009; Posted: 04:45 PM

Speaking in the Rose Garden of the White House after a meeting with the heads of "innovative" energy companies, Obama said a new energy policy is essential both to the nation's economic recovery and to its long term prosperity.

The House measure makes important steps in that direction, Obama said, noting that it will curb greenhouse gas emissions and reduce the nation's dependency on foreign oil while at the same time offering the promise of jobs that can't be outsourced.

"It's now up to the Senate to continue the work that was begun in the House to forge this more prosperous future," Obama said. "We're going to need to set aside the posturing and the politics -- and when we put aside the old ideological debates, then our choice is clear."

He added, "It's a choice between slow decline and renewed prosperity. It's a choice between the past and the future."

The news of continued rise in unemployment only heightens the need for investment in a new energy future, Obama said.

"As our economy adapts to the challenges of a new century, new ways of producing and saving and distributing energy offer a unique opportunity to create millions of jobs for the American people," he said. "This is a timely discussion, on a day of sobering news. The job figures released this morning show that we lost 467,000 jobs last month."

He added, "While there are continuing signs that the recession is slowing, obviously this is little comfort to all those Americans who've lost their jobs. … It took years for us to get into this mess, and it will take us more than a few months to turn it around."

Obama pointed to the companies whose CEOs were arrayed behind him as evidence of the promise of an economy based on cleaner energy.

"It's men and women like these who will help lead us out of this recession and into a better future," he said. "The CEOs standing behind me … are folks whose companies are helping to lead the transformation towards a clean energy future.

He added, "Even as we continue to lose jobs, the CEOs here told me that they're looking to hire new people, in some cases to double or even triple in size over the next few years. They are making money and they are helping their customers save money on the energy front."

Obama said he was "absolutely confident" that the nation could take the current economic challenge and prove what the country can accomplish in overcoming adversity.

"At every juncture in our history, we've chosen to seize big opportunities rather than fear big challenges," he said. "We've chosen to take responsibility. We've chosen to honor the sacrifices of those who came before us and fulfill our obligations to generations to come.

He added, "That's what we're going to do this time, as well."

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