Watsy, You’re Doing a Heck of a Job! « It’s Getting Hot In Here

“What we’re doing can match anyone else in the world or exceed it” Dr. Harlan L. Watson, the chief U.S. climate negotiator, told a room full of U.S. climate advocates today. That Reuters had completely debunked that position earlier that day didn’t matter. He was speaking from talking points prepared weeks or months ago. But where did those talking points come from? Where did Harlan Watson come from?

As expected, all roads led to Exxon. I dug up a 2001 memo (Hat tip NRDC) from Exxon to a senior Bush Administration Official that among other advice suggests they “explore” Dr. Watson for a promotion.In the picture to the left, Dr. Watson has his arm around Marlo Lewis from the Competitive Enterprises Institute, a conservative DC think tank that has been at the center of the global warming misinformation campaign in the U.S. They’re celebrating CEI’s 9th annual dinner, probably with some of the $1,645,000 they’ve received from Exxon corporations since 1998.

The scary part is that Harlan Watson is only the tip of the iceberg. Greenpeace magnificently outlines the web of Exxon influence over Bush Administration policies. And lots of groups are rallying around a campaign to Exxpose Exxon.

About Billy

At the end of 2002, freaked out about the deepening climate crisis, Billy dropped out of Yale University in the middle of his junior year to build a youth movement. He co-founded and led the Energy Action Coalition, which has become the largest youth advocacy organization in the world working on clean energy and global warming issues. Since early 2008, Billy has expanded his work beyond the Energy Action Coalition into a focus on building the green economy and creating green jobs for young people. He has been a consultant for Green for All on their "Green Jobs Now" day of action and developed the idea and campaign to create a Clean Energy Corps, a proposal based on the Civilian Conservation Corps designed to rebuild the country and create millions of new jobs and opportunities for community service. The community service component, The Clean Energy Service Corps, has become law as part of the Serve America Act, and other components of the proposal have been incorporated into the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and the American Clean Energy and Security Act. A serial social entrepreneur, Billy has helped launch dozens of youth, climate and green jobs related organizations and initiatives, including Green Owl Records, a green music label affiliated with Warner Music Group; The Navajo Green Economy Coalition, which recently passed groundbreaking green jobs legislation on the Navajo Nation; and the Alignment Process, a collaborative of 50 large progressive organizations working on passing strong federal legislation to build a green economy and address global warming. Originally from New York City, he now lives with his wife Wahleah Johns and daughter Tohaana in Flagstaff, AZ.

It’s Getting Hot In Here