China and a New Age of Energy
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China has overcome the US as the world's largest consumer of energy. We look at the massive changes in store for the global marketplace, foreign policy, greenhouse gases and climate change. Also, the White House reconsiders the firing of an official over her remarks on race. On Reporter's Notebook, how much Intelligence is too much for national security?
Banner image: A worker controls the production line of the photoelectric board product at the plant of Tianwei Yingli Green Energy Resources Company in Baoding, China. Photo: Feng Li/Getty Images
Making News
White House Reconsiders Firing over Official’s Remarks on Race ()
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack says he'll reconsider the summary firing of Shirley Sherrod, the black official summarily fired after a right-wing website aired a portion of a speech recounting her struggle in dealing with a white farmer 24 years ago. After the fragment circulated on the web, even the NAACP denounced her. But President Benjamin Jealous now says he was "snookered" by the fragment that was taken out of context. Sheryl Gay Stolberg is White House Reporter for the New York Times.
Guests:
- Sheryl Gay Stolberg: White House Reporter, New York Times, @sherylstolberg
Links:
Main Topic
China Overtakes US in Energy Consumption ()
China has now become the world's biggest consumer of energy. Because of the recession, it overcame the US five years sooner than anybody expected. That means more competition for limited resources, more clout for countries the US doesn't like, and, in the short run, more environmental pollution. What will it mean for green technology, especially if the US continues to lead the way in research while China does the manufacturing? We look at the vast implications of what's being called "a new age in the history of energy."
Guests:
- Neil King: Reporter, Wall Street Journal, @NKingofDC
- Trevor Houser: former Senior Advisor, US Special Envoy on Climate Change, @trevor_houser
- Michael Shellenberger: President, Breakthrough Institute
- Bjorn Lomborg: Director, Copenhagen Business School's Consensus Center, @bjornlomborg
Links:
- First Solar on its solar-power deal with China
- Westinghouse on its nuclear-power deal with China
- King on China's 'thirst for energy'
- Houser's paper, 'China Energy: A Guide for the Perplexed'
- Breakthrough Institute's study on Asian nations' domination of clean-energy race
- Lomborg's 'Cool It: The Skeptical Environmentalist's Guide to Global Warming'
Reporter's Notebook
The New Geography of Top Secret America ()
The Washington Post has run an investigative series this week on the dramatic growth of the US intelligence community since September 11. The paper reports it is now so massive that "its effectiveness is impossible to determine." Defense Secretary Robert Gates told the Post it's a challenge even for the Director of National Intelligence to comprehend it. Peter Feaver, Professor of Political Science at Duke University, formerly served on the National Security Council of Presidents Clinton and Bush.
Guests:
- Peter Feaver: former staffer, National Security Council
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