So Hot Right Now
Energy Secretary Steve Chu may be working on cooling the planet from global warming, but he was definitely in the hot seat Wednesday as he faced a barrage of questions from the media during a conference call to discuss the agenda for next week’s forum, “The National Clean Energy Project: Building the New Economy.”
“I hope the press will pick on someone other than me,” said Chu, directing questions to other attendees, who included Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., T. Boone Pickens, chairman of BP Capital Management and John Podesta, president of the Center for American Progress.
Chu, a former U.C. Berkeley physicist, tried to keep the focus on discussing a clean energy policy. “Clean energy is a national goal and needs a national solution,” Chu said. “The president has proposed a plan that we as a cabinet need to execute on.”
Salazar agreed. “The new energy frontier is a huge part of the administration,” he said.
The forum, scheduled for Feb. 23 features Bill Clinton, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and, possibly, an appearance by Al Gore. Which means, of course, that it will snow.
-Ryan Freeman
