When President-elect Barack Obama was interviewed on "60 Minutes" Sunday night, he seemed to stick with his campaign pledge to press ahead with an energy quest (scale to be determined) whether or not it is politically correct. His answers on energy reminded me of what some people perceived as a defining moment during the presidential race, when — in the heat of the "drill here, drill now" summer — Mr. Obama split with Senator John McCain and Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton over the need for a "gas tax holiday" in the face of spiking prices at the pump.
Here's the moment (from the CBS transcript):
Steve Kroft: When the price of oil was at $147 a barrel, there were a lot of spirited and profitable discussions that were held on energy independence. Now you've got the price of oil under $60.
Mr. Obama: Right.
Mr. Kroft: Does doing something about energy, is it less important now than….?
Mr. Obama: It's more important. It may be a little harder politically, but it's more important.
Mr. Kroft: Why?
Mr. Obama: Well, because this has been our pattern. We go from shock to trance. You know, oil prices go up, gas prices at the pump go up, everybody goes into a flurry of activity. And then the prices go back down and suddenly we act like it's not important, and we start, you know, filling up our S.U.V.'s again. And, as a consequence, we never make any progress. It's part of the addiction, all right. That has to be broken. Now is the time to break it.
There are signs aplenty in Mr. Obama's transition work that energy and climate will remain priorities. One pick for the transition at the Office of Science and Technology Policy, according to Darren Samuelsohn at Greenwire and EarthNews, is Mario Molina, a winner of the Nobel Prize in chemistry for his work on harm to the ozone layer and an outspoken advocate for action to limit greenhouse gases (as well as to clean up conventional air pollution in developing countries).
Still, this is all an arena where results matter more than preparations, and where the obstacles facing an incoming president are enormous, as Ira Magaziner reminded me.
More tea leaves, perhaps, were on display as the interview on "60 Minutes" wrapped, as Mr. Obama described the importance of both words and deeds:
Mr. Kroft: Are you gonna make a lot of speeches? Are you gonna talk a lot to the American people on television and radio?
Mr. Obama: You know, I'm not sure that the American people are looking for a lot of speeches. I think what they're looking for is action. But one of the things that I do think is important is to be able to explain to the American people what you're doing, and why you're doing it. That is something that I think every great president has been able to do. From FDR to Lincoln to John Kennedy to Eisenhower. I mean, I think that they were people who were able to say 'Here's the direction we're going. Here's why I think it's important. Here are the possible dangers or challenges. But ultimately, you know, this is gonna lead us to a better America.' And I want to make sure that I can recreate a bond of trust between the presidency and the public that I think has been lost.
