Obama and Emanuel: Good for Great Lakes  | | President-elect Obama in 2005 with U.S. Rep. Rahm Emanuel and Alliance President Cameron Davis (right). |
CHICAGO – The election of Barack Obama as president and the Great Lakes policies he’s embraced portend good things for the Great Lakes, said policy experts attending an Alliance post-election round table Thursday. U.S. Rep. Rahm Emanuel’s decision to serve as Obama’s chief of staff is another important connection to the Great Lakes, said Alliance President Cameron Davis, who called Emanuel “the godfather of Great Lakes restoration legislation” for introducing precedent-setting bills since 2003. “This is a momentous time for the country, for the world and the region," said Davis. “We’re very excited here at the Alliance for the Great Lakes for the doors that have opened.” Davis and Michael Kraft, professor of public and environmental affairs and political science chairman at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, led the hour-long teleconference for Alliance constituents just two days after Obama swept the general election to become the next president-elect. Part of an Alliance Coastal Allies Network program that regularly features discussions on topical issues, the round table attracted an unprecedented 140-plus participants from around the Great Lakes region and Canada and included leading federal and state environmental officials, political leaders, advocates and the media. Kraft, author of numerous books on environmental policy, forecast the country will see a “striking difference” between the evolving Obama administration and that of President Bush, citing as an example the matter of scientific integrity – on which Bush has been criticized by the Union of Concerned Scientists. Davis cited as important Obama’s representation of a South Side Chicago lakefront district and the fact that he’s lived just blocks from Lake Michigan during his state senate years. The president-elect was also involved in a number of Great Lakes policies while in the U.S. Senate, among them his campaign pledge to restore the Great Lakes; co-sponsorship of renewed funding for the Great Lakes Legacy Act to clean up toxic hot spots; and his release of a plan in September to spend $5 billion on Great Lakes restoration. Obama was also one of the earliest co-sponsors of the newly approved Great Lakes Compact, a historic pact drawn up by the eight Great Lakes states and approved by Congress that emphasizes conservation and protects the lakes from diversion. “Right off the bat, we have a President-elect who has signed a commitment and we have a chief of staff who has demonstrated in the past a commitment to Great Lakes restoration -- which is very hopeful to us in many ways," Davis said. Kraft noted that climate change and energy were prominent issues for the first time in a presidential campaign. That, coupled with more Democrats elected to Congress, may mean less support for nuclear power and coal-fired power plants and increased attention to wind, bio-fuels and solar as the country moves toward alternative energy sources. The surge in Democrats elected to office at both the federal and state levels “is a signal to the White House, members on Capitol Hill and the states, that the public really does want some policy changes,” Kraft said. Kraft and Davis agreed, however, that the economic downturn could present a hurdle to progress on the Great Lakes and other environmental initiatives. Given that scenario, Davis encouraged Great Lakes advocates to figure out ways to finance their priority projects to help the new administration with its Great Lakes priorities. As Obama and Emanuel prepare to head to Washington, Davis noted that the two Chicago residents have strong Lake Michigan ties. Davis said his first encounter with Obama was 10 years ago during an Alliance Adopt-a-Beach cleanup in Chicago. Emanuel is known to swim in the lake regularly. “He’s got a very intimate connection to the lake, and I don’t think that will be forgotten,” Davis said. Posted Nov. 6, 2008
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