During the two-and-a-half years that I headed the US Environmental Protection Agency, I met with scores of my ministerial counterparts from across the globe, and invariably the number one item on everyone's agenda was global climate change. I heard considerable consternation over what many saw as the deliberate failure of the US to assume its full responsibility for this problem. This is an unfortunate and unfair perception that has, at times, affected our international relations. Yes, President Bush declined to submit the Kyoto Protocol to the US Senate for ratification. It is worth remembering, however, that Bill Clinton also declined to do this when he was president. He knew privately what Bush said publicly: the Senate would not ratify Kyoto. That is the plain political reality in the US.
展开▼
