14 DAY TRIAL // With the coming of the new administration, the "green" community is now turning towards President-elect Barack Obama and the representatives of the Democratic Party, for new legislation on the matter, as well as for increased government financial support for renewable projects. Obama has already pledged to invest some $150 billion in this field, over a period of ten years.
Lead representatives of the solar and wind industries expressed their optimism that the new administration would voice increasing support towards renewable energy and said that the only reason Obama received their endorsements was because he promised to bring the sustainable way of producing electrical energy into the spotlight.
J. Peter Lynch, a financial analyst, said that "To date, we have had no leadership capable of moving the world in a new direction. President Obama can be this leader, he will be the catalyst for the dawn of the solar revolution and the beginning of the transition to a truly renewable economy."
"President-elect Obama is the first national presidential candidate who has explicitly campaigned for renewable technologies and green jobs – and the U.S. will now more likely embrace more comprehensive policies that will drive these U.S.-created technologies to become integrated into our nation’s energy mix resulting in significantly lower energy imports and greenhouse gas emissions," argued Stella Group president, Scott Sklar.
However, the only way to tell if Democrats and the new president will lift up to their words is over time. Promises of promoting renewable energy have been made in the past as well, and, though both campaigns this year had "green technology" as a strong point, the realities of running for office and being in the office are very different. Hopefully, Obama will not be added to the long list of presidents who forgot their promises to the electorate once they were sworn in.