Obama Could Tackle Climate Change on His Own; But Will He?

"In his State of the Union speech, [President Obama] promised to take executive action if Congress failed to pass climate legislation....Yet we are now four months into Mr. Obama’s second term, and there is no visible sign of a coherent strategy."

"As this page has noted, it is possible to adopt a robust climate strategy based largely on executive actions." The Board outlines several actions that the President could push forward, including: limiting pollution from stationary industrial sources, curbing the leakage of methane from gas wells and pipes, and improving the efficiency of appliances and commercial and residential buildings. 

"Mr. Obama has a firm grasp of the climate issue, and no one doubts that he cares about it. But as is often the case with this president, the question is whether he will exhibit a sense of urgency to match his intellectual understanding."