Editorial: An inconvenient president

Tuesday, May 29, 2007 | 7:01 a.m.

Everyone from Minnesota turkey farmers to the mayor of New York City to the chancellor of Germany, it seems, is committing to the fight against global warming.

One notable exception, however, is President Bush.

While the news almost every day contains stories of ingenious new ways to reduce the prime cause of global warming - the burning of fossil fuels - President Bush remains glued to yesteryear. He consistently resists calls for setting immediate goals for reducing greenhouse gases.

The opposite stance was revealed last week at a meeting of national and international mayors in New York City. They rallied behind a unified sense of urgency on this issue.

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, for example, announced a 127-point plan to cut his city's emissions by 30 percent by 2030. Included is a goal to have all of the city's 13,000 cabs powered by hybrid technology within five years.

Yet Bush refuses to commit the nation to any such goal, despite the great potential for achieving it given the efforts under way in individual states.

In Minnesota last week, for example, it was announced that an electric plant capable of powering 50,000 homes will be operational next month. Its fuel will not be coal but biomass - turkey droppings, to be exact.

With ice rapidly melting in the Arctic regions - tangible proof of warming - stories such as these are in the nation's papers every day as people across the country work hard to develop cleaner energy. Still Bush resists, even against world leaders.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe are among world leaders who want a cooperative plan to cut carbon emissions in half worldwide by 2050. Yet the proposal is seen as dead because of White House resistance.

Literally, for the sake of the world, we hope our next president understands the dangers inherent in global warming and joins with the majority of responsible national and international leaders in the efforts against it.