Green Campaign

From the EEI newsletter:

Some Presidential Campaigns Buying Offsets for Their CO2 Emissions

Several Democratic Party presidential candidates have adopted carbon-neutral policies, the Washington Times reported, citing Federal Election Commission reports. Campaign staff have released details of how many tons of CO2 emissions – primarily from air travel - equaled the amount the campaigns paid for offsets. Former Sen. John Edwards, D-N.C., leads the pack, and so far this year his campaign has spent almost $22,000 buying carbon offsets. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., spent $2,367 to offset her campaign's emissions in April, [to be fair, this appears to be an apples to organges comparison. What's Clinton spent "so far this year"?] and Sen. Christopher J. Dodd, D-Conn., bought $650 worth of offsets from April through June. Although Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., has not reported buying offsets, his campaign has paid more than $700,000 to Air Charter Team, which offsets emissions through Carbon Fund, the Times reported. One GOP presidential candidate, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., has instructed his campaign to use energy-conserving technology and to turn off air conditioners in offices when no one is present, the Times reported. He has not bought any offsets.
Washington Times , Aug. 7.


One imagines that McCain simply cannot afford air conditioning at this point.