Blogging the Republican National Convention—Day 4

John McCain has long been an avowed fan of Theodore Roosevelt , one of the nation’s most charismatic presidents and one of its first and most influential environmental advocates. So it’s not surprising that Roosevelt’s great-grandson, Theodore Roosevelt IV, is someone the Republican presidential nominee has turned to for advice and perspective when confronted with high-profile environmental policy decisions.

Over the course of about a year, McCain has had repeated conversations about the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) with Roosevelt, a managing director for Lehman Brothers who spoke Friday at a gathering for Republican National Convention delegates and officials. Many in McCain’s party want to drill for oil in the wilderness area. McCain, though, has listened repeatedly over the past year to Roosevelt make his case for protecting the area. Finally, Roosevelt got a call from McCain one day at his office.

When Roosevelt picked up the phone, the Arizona senator’s gravelly voice announced that Roosevelt had won his case. The line he used drew laughter as Roosevelt relayed it to a room full of McCain delegates: “Ted, I’m with you, but you can’t tell a goddamned person until I release it.’'

Green Republicans

Roosevelt was the guest of honor at a session sponsored by a group whose symbol is the green elephant: Republicans for Environmental Protection (REP) . At a convention where delegates’ shouts of “Drill, baby, drill” interrupted speeches by both McCain and his vice presidential pick Sarah Palin, the REP gathering was a welcome dose of straight talk about the need for stewardship and about both the realities and the challenges of shifting from fossil fuels to sustainable energy sources. “Conservation is Conservative’’ proclaimed the banner across the top of the gathering room in St. Paul’s historic Hamm Building.

While the event got a good turnout of delegates, it wasn’t jammed with either party devotees or the media. And that’s a shame. The REP is the real deal when it comes to environmental advocacy and doesn’t pull any punches for candidates either inside or outside the Republican Party.

Unlike many gatherings that were closed to the press, the REP welcomed bloggers and reporters. David Jenkins, the REP’s government affairs director, spent a great deal of time with me explaining the group’s mission and its history. One of the key things he mentioned is that the group did not endorse President Bush in 2000 or 2004. The reason? Bush fell short when the group sat down and looked at his policies and track record as an environmental steward.

This year, the REP is endorsing John McCain. And, like Roosevelt arguing on behalf of the ANWR, they make a good case. McCain, they believe, is a conservative who understands the value of stewardship. McCain’s vote to safeguard the ANWR, one of Dwight D. Eisenhower’s conservation legacies, is just one small part of McCain’s record that has garnered the REP’s approval.

According to the REP:

- McCain was the first senator of either party to introduce comprehensive climate change legislation.- He’s seen evidence of climate change firsthand and taken his congressional colleagues with him on various trips to win their support.- He has a balanced energy policy to pilot the nation through a transitional energy era.- He’s helped reform the way Congress funds water projects and has blocked big-spending proposals that would have negatively impacted waterways and wetlands.

Roosevelt, who described himself as a “moderate Republican,” added his strong voice to the REP’s support for McCain. But he also offered up some blunt talk about the nation’s energy policy, the economy, and some of the remedies that have been proposed at the RNC gathering. Roosevelt was very concerned about the economy, saying it is worse than the current leadership has acknowledged and that it is going to take time to recover. And that recovery will involve raising interest rates, increasing taxes, and cutting spending.

Sustainable energy

Roosevelt said Republicans need to embrace the shift to sustainable energy because it is intertwined with the economy and will help drive the recovery. He chided the party’s call for energy independence, saying it’s probably not possible because oil is the lifeblood of transportation energy. But, he said, it is possible for the nation to reduce its dependency on foreign energy sources.

Roosevelt also mentioned some of the key energy issues addressed at the RNC, which ended its four-day run Thursday with McCain’s speech.

For example, “clean coal” is something of a holy energy grail that’s been mentioned in speeches before the main body of delegates at the Xcel Energy Center and also by House Republican leadership at an energy press conference held during the convention. Roosevelt noted correctly that practical clean coal technology doesn’t exist yet. If anything, Roosevelt said, we’re still 10 to 15 years away from where we need to be. And that’s with some kind of private-public partnership to accelerate development.

Roosevelt also urged McCain to stay the course on the ANWR. Palin is for drilling in the ANWR. Roosevelt said he understood why she’d take that position as the governor of Alaska. But Roosevelt, who is open to some offshore drilling, said the environmental risks of drilling in the ANWR are too great. The oil is in pockets and there would need to be an extensive network of pipelines. Pipelines, he noted, have a questionable safety record. Roosevelt said he didn’t believe McCain would change his stance on the ANWR even though his vice presidential pick believes in opening it up to drilling. Roosevelt said he hopes that Palin will “have to toe the line” in a McCain administration

The right candidate

According to Roosevelt, McCain is the right candidate to lead the country at this critical time. Citing his long conversation with McCain concerning the ANWR, he asked the crowd which candidate is more willing to listen to the evidence before making a decision on the environment and energy? The crowd enthusiastically replied: “McCain!” Roosevelt posed a similar question, “Who is more likely to stand up to Congress and cut spending?” and got the same response.

Although McCain seemed to take a more hardline approach, in his acceptance speech Thursday night, on expanding drilling opportunities, the REP gathering offered a heartening glimpse of the candidate and a different but still clearly influential wing of the GOP. That influence is much more visible in McCain’s platform (LINK HERE) than it has been during the convention.

On Friday morning, the delegates and protesters began returning home. Crews were returning the Xcel Energy Center to its regular use: a hockey arena for the Minnesota Wild. It was clear, though, that despite the rhetoric, common ground exists between the Republicans and the Democrats when it comes to energy and the environment. The shift to more sustainable energy sources was clearly supported all this week, as well as widespread acknowledgment of the economic gold mine this shift represents. There are policy differences, to be sure, but a general sense of where the nation needs to go. That’s a reassuring feeling as we head into what is sure to be a hard-fought campaign in the weeks ahead with no clear sense of who will emerge the victor on election day.

Jill Jungling