Balance of Power

If President Obama needed any validation for the "Green New Deal" he intends to make a cornerstone of his economic recovery plan and a part of his address to Congress tonight, he likely got it during a meeting on Tuesday with Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso.

Aso, the first foreign leader to visit Obama at the White House, proposed a four-point plan for the two governments to pursue on environmental matters that includes developing common standards for electric cars and plug-in hybrids, promoting carbon sequestration as a means to cut greenhouse gas emissions and preventing nuclear proliferation in developing countries, the Daily Yomiuri reports.

Obama intends to make these kind of green initiatives a prominent part of the budget plan his administration will roll out on Thursday, and the economic stimulus package (PL 111-5) already addresses "clean coal" technologies that utilize sequestration, as well as revamping the power grid and promoting renewable energy.

The leaders also chatted about less pleasant topics, like developing a global framework for addressing the financial crisis. Aso, described as somewhat gruff and outspoken, can certainly empathize with Obama's situation; Japan also is grappling with soaring budget deficits and negative growth. But we wonder if the PM repeated remarks he made last September, when he expressed pride that Japan had not succumbed to the "money game" that dragged down the U.S. financial system.