An investigation by Think Progress, a Web site run by the Center for American Progress, a self-described progressive Washington think tank, found that 50 percent of the more than 100 Republican newcomers to Congress deny the existence of man-made climate change. A vast majority, 86 percent, opposes climate change legislation that increases government costs.

Presumptive Speaker of the House John Boehner, R-Ohio, in an appearance on ABC News' "This Week with George Stephanopoulos" in April 2009 said, "The idea that carbon dioxide is a carcinogen that is harmful to our environment is almost comical."

In his post-election news conference Wednesday, Obama signaled he was giving up on the prospect of comprehensive climate and energy legislation at least until 2012.

"I think there are a lot of Republicans that ran against the energy bill that passed in the House last year and so it's doubtful that you could get the votes to pass that through the House this year or next year or the year after," Obama told reporters at the White House.

Urging policymakers not to ignore global warming science, Obama called for bipartisan cooperation on energy policy.

Obama acknowledged that the cap-and-trade approach to limiting greenhouse gas emissions, backed by his administration, "was just one way of skinning the cat; it was not the only way. It was a means, not an end."

The president also pointed to the nation's reserves of natural gas and a revived nuclear power sector as a way of enhancing energy independence.

"We've got, I think, broad agreement that we've got terrific natural gas resources in this country. Are we doing everything we can to develop those? ... There's been discussion about how we can restart our nuclear industry as a means of reducing our dependence on foreign oil and reducing greenhouse gases. Is that an area where we can move forward?"

"But let's not wait," he urged.

Post election, the president's focus may center more on energy independence rather than climate change.

A White House official told The Washington Post that energy would continue to be a top priority for the Obama administration but with a different slant.

"I think you'll see in the next few weeks the administration say, 'OK, you may not necessarily agree with the science on climate change, you may not see tackling greenhouse gases as a real priority but what we can all agree on is creating jobs and investing in a clean-energy economy that's going to leave the U.S. more competitive,'" said Heather Zichal, deputy assistant to the president for energy and climate-change policy.

earlier related report
Cancun talks cannot afford to fail: EU climate chief
Mexico City (AFP) Nov 5, 2010 - The European Union's top climate official warned Friday that international climate talks in Cancun this month were likely to be tough, but that failure could threaten the whole UN process.

"If we do not keep momentum in Cancun and build on what was achieved in Copenhagen, then there is a risk that some key parties will start to simply lose interest in the international UN process," said European Commissioner for Climate Action Connie Hedegaard at a pre-summit meeting in Mexico City.

The UN-backed November 29-December 10 talks in Cancun follow an acrimonious summit in the Danish capital one year ago on pushing back the threat of climate change after 2012.

"It's probably going to be tough" in Cancun, Hedegaard told AFP, acknowledging that the goal of an internationally binding deal had slipped given the unchanging positions of China and the United States.

The two giants clashed at a UN climate meeting in China in October, accusing each other of blocking progress ahead of Cancun.

"In the end, what matters is that the world's two largest emitters ... that they also say: 'Yes, we really want to do this,'" Hedegaard said.

"They have a huge responsibility."

Hedegaard called for a practical approach and smaller goals, such as deals on deforestation, setting up climate warning systems, progress on financing, and encouraging the transfer of cleaner technology to poorer countries.

Actions such as emissions targets from businesses and countries in recent years showed that the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was making progress, Hedegaard said.

"If we do not have this process then people should not believe that OK, then there is just some magical bullet," she added.

Recent weather -- including an unprecedented heatwave in Russia, record temperatures in the Middle East, heavy rain in northern Europe and flooding which caused massive mudslides in China -- fits with scientific predictions regarding climate change, Hedegaard said.

"I do not say that every time you see heavy precipitation that it's due to climate change, I just say that all the things you saw globally this year are very much in line with what scientists had warned us would happen."

The long-running UN negotiations are aimed at eventually securing a binding global treaty on how to limit and cope with climate change.

This would replace the Kyoto Protocol, which expires at the end of 2012.

Representatives of 51 countries and the European Union took part in the two-day meeting in the Mexican capital, ending Friday.

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