Washington, D.C.- In his State of the Union address tomorrow evening, U.S. President George W. Bush is widely expected to address the issue of climate change. As listeners tune in, the Worldwatch Institute has assembled a brief “test” they can use to judge whether the president’s
words represent a u-turn in climate policy or a “stay-the-course” nod to new political realities.

When President Bush took the oath of office six years ago, many expected a strong new policy on global warming, based in part on his campaign statements. Indeed, the president’s oil industry background gave him a “Nixon-to-China” opportunity to exercise bold leadership on climate change. Today, amid melting ice sheets, growing public demand for
action, and major policies recently enacted in California and the European Union, President Bush has another chance to make the United States a leader in solving the climate problem-not just in producing the gases that cause it.

State and local governments are showing the way. Nearly 350 U.S. cities-home to more than 54 million Americans-have joined the U.S. Mayors’ Climate Protection Agreement, committing them to reducing their emissions and lobbying for a national climate policy. And California,
together with eight northeastern states, is planning to place a “cap” on total emissions of greenhouse gases, requiring major polluters to either reduce their emissions or purchase emissions permits from other companies that do.

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