From today's "The Progress Report" of the The Center for American Progress Action Fund 



      A LOW CARBON-BASED ECONOMY: Two weeks ago, the Nobel Prize-winning Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) presented its sternest warning yet<http://capweb.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=MMgonusR4TLTP5uixF%2BkpBbhXyya6Of%2B> about the need to immediately tackle climate change. "If there's no action before 2012, that's too late. What we do in the next two to three years will determine our future<http://capweb.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=1iSu3vffpVIfaoF0BjF3vRbhXyya6Of%2B>. This is the defining moment," said IPCC head Rajendra Pachauri. Progressive Growth recognizes the need for immediate action on global warming, "the greatest moral and economic challenge of our time<http://capweb.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=JLWs7FgSw%2Bw6Q6L43GwF3RbhXyya6Of%2B>." The report focuses its economic strategy on building a low-carbon energy infrastructure, based on clean, renewable energy sources, that could "fuel the creation of good jobs and good prospects for workers at all skill levels." The report also calls for the implementation of an economy-wide cap-and-trade system for greenhouse gases, the transformation of our transportation and electricity systems, and the energetic commitment to working internationally against global warming. Although the White House continues to turn its back<http://capweb.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=6wH9gRpT62vj3CV5eKnh/xbhXyya6Of%2B> on the need for immediate action, Congress is making important strides toward global warming reduction with the imminent passage of an energy bill, which contains stronger fuel economy and cap-and-trade measures. The Senate Environment Committee will meet next week to enhance and pass the American Climate Security Act, S. 2191, which would create a two percent annual reduction in global warming pollution. Smart energy policies can stimulate the economy in needed ways. A recent study by the Union of Concerned Scientists found that a 20 percent national renewable electricity standard by 2020 would create 185,000 jobs each year, save consumers $10.5 billion on energy bills<http://capweb.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=QyZQueTCM5W86GC4fa06ZyH7iB%2Bhh4aC>, and reduce carbon dioxide levels by 223 million metric tons a year. (An American Progress video highlights what a new energy economy would look like. Watch it here<http://capweb.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=rMUWlFBakWnqUYOtOwIrJBbhXyya6Of%2B>.)

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      "Federal wildlife regulators will revise seven controversial decisions on endangered species" made by President Bush's controversial Interior Department appointee Julie MacDonald, who quit after criticisms that she "routinely questioned and sometimes overruled recommendations<http://capweb.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?v=2&c=qcb9PHh3b%2BHj3CV5eKnh/xbhXyya6Of%2B> by biologists and other field staffers."


     

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