Lead with green

If Democrats want to mobilize large numbers of voters, they will have to do one thing that the Republicans have done very well, and that is pick an issue that strikes a nerve with its base. Republicans this year seem to have picked immigration, and the Democrats should respond with hammering away at something that not only excites its base, but also independents. \nBesides the important issues of national security and the economy, Democrats should choose an issue that not only separates them from the Republicans but also illustrates the party’s core beliefs and strengths. \nThat issue should be the environment and energy independence. \nWhat the immigration issue is to the right, the environment can be to the left. \nDemocrats should focus on the political, environmental and economic benefits of massive investment programs in new green technologies. They should also emphasize that Republican neglect of this issue will hurt our economy and lead America down the wrong path. \nGovernment and private investment in new green technologies has three main benefits:\n1. Political: Currently, the United States’ government has had to play nice, if not downright kiss up, to certain corrupt anti-democratic regimes in the world to assure that we have the oil we need to run our economy. Much of this oil money goes to support the same corrupt regimes with detestable human rights records. Not relying on oil would help America avoid having its message of democracy and human rights sidelined because of its energy needs.\n2. Environmental: By researching and developing green technologies, we could reduce pollution as well as carbon emissions that cause global warming. Reducing emissions from our cars and household energy would significantly help slow down pollution and could also help curb global climate change.\n3. Economic: With governmental and private investment in green technology, we are helping our economy by creating new technologies and becoming a world leader in this area. Investment opportunities abound. As the environment becomes a more and more important political issue, the economic benefits of developing green technology seem almost limitless. And whichever country leads this “green revolution” will be well-positioned in the future global economy. The profitability of new green technology is not some pipe dream, and companies are only beginning to see all that is possible. One stock market index called the Cleantech Index invests in companies that get at least 50 percent of their business from clean technologies. It presents data that suggests it has outperformed the Dow Jones 30 Industrials, NASDAQ and S&P 500 during the past five years.\nIf Democrats want to offer Americans hope for improvement, they must emphasize how important it is that America’s great intellectual, scientific and industrial resources lead the way in the global challenge of developing green technologies. If neither party takes up this call, it is not only Democrats and Republicans that lose – we all will.