Pres. Obama finally tackles climate change: "Act before it's too late."

Impact

Tonight's State of the Union address finally tackled clean energy and climate change.  All I can say: it's about time.

Well, that's not all I can say.  The policies he advocated are a mix of old and new.  His call for a market-based solution (i.e. a cap-and-trade plan that failed to get passed three years ago) is certainly going to be a tough pill for the House to swallow, which is why I'm sure he immediately followed it with the promise (threat?) that he would be, as predicted, forcing executive action to address energy and climate policy.

But I'm very happy about the proposal to use oil and gas revenue for a new trust fund, and his comments on how the U.S. has lagged behind China in clean energy manufacturing.

Again, as expected, Speaker Boehner was as steely-faced as the Supreme Court, and both his and his party's keisters stayed firmly in their Congressional and Senatorial seats while the chamber otherwise burst into applause.

More detailed analysis to follow after the speech ends.