League of Conservation Voters 2008 Voter Guide

The League of Conservation Voters (LCV), an independent, nonpartisian environmental advocacy organization, has released its 2008 Primary Voter Guide. The guide assigns a score to each candidate based on their proposed policies and lifetime record on environmental issues.

The goal of the LCV and its voter guide is to give citizens the information necessary to choose elected officials shaping the future of environmental and conservation policy. In the latest voter guide, Democratic candidate Senator Barack Obama scored the highest of any candidate in the field. Obama received a LCV Lifetime Score of 96. This is compared to Dennis Kucinich's 92 (he has since dropped out of the race), Hillary Clinton's 90, and John Edwards' score of 59.

The main differences between the leading candidates are:

• Obama supports a 52 mpg fleetwide standard by 2026 (Clinton: 40 mpg by 2020, 55 mpg by 2030; Edwards: 40 mpg by 2016)


• Obama supports a 50% reduction in energy intensity by 2050 (Clinton: 20% reduction by 2020; Edwards: 15% reduction by 2018)


• Obama would consider a moratorium on new coal plants if a mandatory cap on carbon emissions does not slow new plant construction (Edwards: supports a moratorium; Clinton: does not support a moratorium, but only a phased-in requirement to have new coal plants capture and store emissions)

According to the LCV, global warming and America's energy future are the greatest challenges facing the current generation.

[League of Conservation Voters - 2008 Presidential Primaries Voting Guide]