New investigative report on climate, Big Oil and Big Auto: HEAT preview

by Emily Gertz

Published October 12, 2008 @ 03:49PM PST

"It's as if Tony Soprano had a seat in the Senate" -- this is so far my favorite quote from the preview for HEAT, the new investigative report from Frontline that will hit the airwaves and the internets on October 21. According to the advance materials, HEAT will explore how car makers, oil and coal companies, and other energy-related big business -- which have long used their financial might and political influence to hijack intelligent discussion of global warming and stall or kill environmental policy changes --  are now under pressure to change the way they do business.  While some are trying to "fend off new regulations," reads the HEAT promotion, "others are repositioning themselves to prosper in a radically changed world."

I couldn't make Frontline's advance screening of HEAT in Washington, D.C. last week (but watch this space -- I'm working on getting an advance screener in time to write a review). Gristmill's Kate Sheppard did, and  reported back on the post-screening encounter between David Sandalow, a climate and energy adviser to Sen. Barack Obama, and Douglas Holtz-Eakin, a senior policy adviser for Sen. John McCain.

After a few minutes of mutual appreciation for representing candidates who are committed to throwing off the Bush/Cheney legacy of inaction on global warming, reports Kate, Sandalow and Holtz-Eakin picked up the boxing gloves to spar over the differences in each campaign's plans for re-stabilizing the climate:

"I guess I could sum [the difference] up in two words: Sarah Palin," said Sandalow. "I really do applaud Sen. McCain for getting out in front in 2003 on this issue, but, you know, just two months ago he chose as his vice president somebody who is in the papers within the past week questioning the validity of the science of global warming."

"I think that has to give pause to anybody who cares about this issue," continued Sandalow. "We have seen this bad movie before. The vice president of the United States who questions the science, and who the president says will be in charge of energy policy. I don't think we want a rerun of this movie."

Holtz-Eakin maintained that McCain remains as committed to the issue as ever, and that his plan is the more politically feasible. He...shrugged off the Palin issue -- even though just one day before McCain was reaffirming his desire to put Palin in charge of energy policy, and his willingness to let her persuade him on energy and environmental issues.

..."John McCain has three times brought [climate] legislation into Congress. He's fought his own party. He has sent his staff to the international meetings for years now. He is conversant with the international community on this issue. He is dedicated to solving the problem. And there's nothing about Sarah Palin that changes that."

Read the rest at Gristmill.

HEAT will be on the air and online as of October 21. Check out this video -- it's the first time a preview for a public television show ever gave me goosebumps: