David Gergen | BIO
AC360° Contributor
CNN Senior Political Analyst
In coming months, public attention will heavily focus on the performance of Barack Obama’s economic and national security teams, but over the long haul, his new team in science and technology could do even more to shape the country’s future. They will arrive not a moment too soon.
Over the past seven plus years, many leaders in the science and technology community feel they have been in a virtual war with the Bush administration. They despaired, as one told me this weekend, that “no one was ever home” and that the Bush team was so dismissive of key scientific research that it threatened our future.
In a brief capsule, here are some of their key complaints:.
Against this backdrop, it is not surprising that the scientific community began rallying to Barack Obama months ago. Periodically, Dr. Harold Varmus, now chief of Memorial Sloan Kettering, convened informal conference calls among leading scientists to provide counsel to the Obama campaign, and they also met with Obama for a morning of conversation in Pennsylvania.
This past Saturday, Obama began filling out his appointments to his science and technology team, and it is a star-studded cast, promising a sharp break with the Bush administration. Among those who will be surrounding him are a physicist who has won a Nobel Prize (Steven Chu), a physicist and top expert on global warming who will be his top science adviser in the White House (John Holdren), a chemical engineer who has won acclaim for as an environmental leader in New Jersey (Lisa Jackson), a marine biologist is a leading expert on the impact of global warming on the oceans (Jane Lubchenco),. a polymath who heads up one of the most important genome projects in the country (Eric Lander), and a biologist who won a Nobel prize in medicine (Varmus). It doesn’t get any better than that!
For at least half a century, America has been the world’s premier nation for scientific and technological research. Remaining at the cutting edge is not only important for the advancement of knowledge, but it is also critical – absolutely critical - for the creation of high-powered jobs and meeting the challenges of global warming. In his Internet address on Saturday, Obama said, “It’s time we once again put science at the top of our agenda and worked to restore America’s place as the world leader in science and technology.” He’s right – it is none too soon to call off the war and build a strong, new alliance between government and science. .
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Not to mention the war against access to contraception and plan B.
Hope you are right!
However, talk is cheap. We shall see Pres. Obama's commitment to the scientific progress of the US when he proposes new budgets for the NIH, NSF etc.
Until then, his advisers can rant and rave about global warming until they are blue in the face ( anybody noticed how cold it is outside?)
Obama's choices of scientific advisors simply reflects his bias towards the fear-mongering "global warming" experts that he favors. Here's a hint; natural variation in global temperatures.
Just because little has been released on studies of warming and energy independence over the last 8 years does not mean that efforts have not been being made to plan for the future. "The Manhattan 2 Project" is a privately run group with engineers, computer modelers, and visionaries who have been hard at work planning for the future. To learn more visit SolarTransfer or Manhattan2 for just a hint at what we have been up to.
This is wonderful news for the health of our nation. The National Institutes of Health is the premier organization for the advancement of our understanding of disease and of new treatments. Bush's anti-science platform and ignorance have had an unfortunate consequence in stagnating needed advancement of medical science. We applaud President Obama and his advisors.
If you actually look at the facts, the Republicans under Bush increased funding (esp. NIH!) more than any Democratic congress ever has. Under Clinton the US pulled out of the ITER effort, and it rejoined under Bush. And the biggest increases in the physical sciences was proposed under the Bush administration, in the form of the ACT – using your key phrase above, "..Congress refused to fund it." – thats a Democratic controlled congress – and they did it just to spite Bush, instead of passing an enourmous increase in science funding. Anyone in the APS knows that. If you don't know what ITER, ACT, and APS are, you shouldn't be contemplating the subject. And now we keep hearing rumors that Obama is going to cut the Constellation program. (Thats NASA – under Cliton it faired awful with Goldin as director, it has flourished again under a Griffin, an actual scientist). So I guess ignorance is bliss for all of you.
Cudos to Gergen...the man amongst boys pretending to be men! YOu are consistently the voice of reason even though at times I'm at odds with your views. I always look to have you weigh in on the issues of the day because I know you will have thought them through and your opinions will be grounded in fact. As a medical scientist I'm glad to see that Obama nation is embrassing science as a significant/crucial component of our finding our way back to the head of the class. What a relief to have smart folk back in leadership. Go Obama! Gergen counting on you to keep the honest and on track.
the previous bush administration has damanged our country and the world more than any terrorist could have ever hoped for. from the enviornment to the war on terror they HAVE DONE NOTHING RIGHT. and and committed many crime felonies like turning in our own spies, like torturing people, like attacking the wrong country thru lies(irak). the fruits of thier ignorant cruel arrogance is just beginning to wreak its havock on our country. lies to a loser war by chicken hawks who sold the enviornment and the economy right down the river. you dont know how sad it is YET. still upset , tommy
Not to defend Mr. Bush but never said you could not do Stem Cell Research. He just said the Government should not pay for it. Why should the Government pay for everything. You all should read 'Atlas Shrugged' to see what happens when the Government takes over all Science Research.
Of course, this all assumes that it's solely the Government's responsibility to finance new research. Our pharmaceuticals might cost a fortune but there was no drop in research during the Bush administration. Instead, if we want an advance in stem cells it seems that we have to cry to dear old Uncle Sam and beg for a new lab.
Maybe it's time to stop relying solely on the government to decide where our dollars go. It don't seem particularly adept at making such weighty decisions.
And when the oil companies start going out of business, then what?
Keep watching...
This is fantastic...and it fills me with hope. I'd love to post this on my Facebook page, but 75% of my "friends" on Facebook are Biblical Creationists...and I already infuriated them enough with my Obama profile pics and rants. A return to intelligence in the White House. Who'd believe it.
Obama listens to Gore and IPCC, who are more political than scientific. You are doing the same thing you accuse Bush of. Won't a scientist skeptical of your views be just as exasperated?
Let common sense and respect for true science research and its benfefits prevail. Science and discoveries made this nation great and we need to regain that leadership and help this world go forward. I have great hope in Obama and his approach.
How can you claim James Hansen of NASA has been silenced? He has give well over 1,400 interviews. How is that being silenced.
Bush acknowledges the costs of Kyoto-style cap and trade are enormous and there are zero climate benefits. How it is "scientific" to do something just to do it? That's not rationale.
As usual, claims that Bush is anti-science are not supported by actual data. But it make a nice story, but not a factual one.
The scientific community is rallying about Obama because they want money. I like money too, but I don't ask the taxapayer for it.
Since when does Science require government support?
Sounds more like people crying for money.
If it is as important as folks seem to think it is why doesn't private foundations fund the research? Why is only government assistance required.
The O-Man is for anything that profits his banker paymasters.
If and Whenever Mr Gergen is in any panel, his take on any issue is always to the point. I love his insight on issues just as he points out here. It is not too late to begin again. I am a Canadian who just happen to love Barack Obama and i think he will make great improvements in US relations with other countries.
Bush and his administration has in the past few weeks put into place changes to regulations governing the Endangered Species Act and the Clean Water Act making it easier for development and coal projects to skip the scientific review now required for licenses to mine coal and for development of projects to determine the impact on the environment and on any endangered wildlife in the area. These changes which were pushed through so they will be in effect before Obama's inauguration will gut both Acts and sacrifice our environment and its occupants to greater harm than it suffers now.
The regulations "tweaked" for the Clean Water Act will make it possible for mountaintop removal mining to continue uninterrupted in the mountains of Appalachian filling the streams and headwaters of streams with valley fill. Fresh water streams will continue to be destroyed; up to this point the amount of fresh water streams that have already been destroyed by these practices equals the length of the Ohio River. Similarly for Endangered Species the required review mandated in the Act previously will be able to be bypassed so that drilling and development of some of our most bio-diverse refuges can be undertaken without the review and planning of how to impact the area and its wildlife as little as possible. This will open up areas like the Alaska Wildlife Refuge to Big Oil and other companies who would like to profit off the natural resources of the area without regard to the wildlife or people dependent on the wildlife in that area.
I hope Obama will reverse these changes and have his scientists look at what really needs to be done in these areas. Hopefully, its not too late to arrest the destruction that Bush and his friends in Big Oil and Big Coal have been responsible for.
It has been a refreshing change to watch Obama put together his team. The focus has been on qualified people rather than cronies. While I do not expect miracles I cannot help but expect our country to move in the right direction again. What a pleasant change after the past 8 years.
Thank you for bringing attention to this topic. It is key to protecting our future, both environmentally and economically. We cannot compete and lead in the future without moving our thinking and understanding forward. It is also high time that public policies on health, the environment, etc was based upon evidence and scientific knowledge rather than ancient superstition and existing business interest.
If God had wanted humans to fly He would have given us wings–or minds that can grow & expand our understanding of this wondrous & mysterious world & universe which He has created.
I simply love David Gergen's commentary, candor, class and distinctiveness.
This does not surprise me. At least we now have a president in office chosen by the people and not shady politics ( Palm Beach county election) . Perhaps this administration will allow top leaders in their respective fields to be heard, actually taking their view into consideration, a key element of a true democracy.
It's about time that our best and brightest are in positions of leadership.
As someone who has always expected our President to be smarter than I am, it is truly great to see a president who understands that our science policy needs to be proposed and executed by outstanding scientists
Kudos! However, I noticed this article doesn't mention one of the most important scientific debates to take places during the Bush Presidency – Creationism vs. Evolution. I would love to see Obama declare the truth once and for all: Evolution is a fact of all life. Evolution does not necessarily discount nor disprove God. It's hard to swallow that we live in a society where the truth can be skewed in favor of a religious "wish list". If this is change we can actually believe in, then it's about time we stop catering to religious Conservative groups and start living with nothing but the truth!
Hello David:
I have followed your comments throughout the primaries to and including the election. You always give an indepth and thoughful summation based on evidence-based scientific data.
As a public Canadian employee, I totally agree with you comments.
In this epoch of scientific and technological age, it behooves American to use the best resources they have in this field.
Thanks again for your comments.
Another Canadian for Obama.
Another suggested reading is "The Republican War on Science." It is a good read. There is too much in the way of ideology pointing to where the science should be looking. I guess this is what we get for some who has very little intellectual and scientific curiousity.
Stem cell technology is to the medical community what the invention of the microchip is to the computer industry. We must remove all road blocks built on shaky ethical principles and think of the good we can do with this science on every front; medical, economical, nation security (etc.). Funding embryonic stem cell research will create a whole new industry and help get this country up on its feet again.
I don't think the majority of people in this country have had any clue just how clueless our current administation has been about environmental issues, science research issues, and practically any form of medical research. This includes, unfortunately, many of our lawmakers.
I'm cautiously optimistic about the future administration recognizing the absolute necessity of joining the Kyoto Accord to reduce worldwide carbon monoxide emissions, and to do what is possible to salvage many species brought to the virtual brink of extinction by our own shortsightedness. I'm also hopeful that the American people will truly take to heart the necessity to reseach and use alternate forms of energy, reduce strip mining and deforestation, and save some of our wild areas that, under President Bush, have become vulnerable to exploitation. Drilling offshore where dozens of species of fish use the area to mate and spawn is so counterproductive to being good stewards of our land and oceans! Opening vast expanses of our National Parks for lumbering, mining, and oil/gas drilling could kill off the use of those lands by future generations.
I pray that President Elect Obama will use the tools at hand, including President Bush's favorite, the executive order, to reverse some of these disastrous decisions.
As one who is inclined towards a scientific approach to things I have to whole heartedly agree with Mr. Gergen. I work in the tech sector and I've seen the precipitous fall of US technological / scientific dominance over the past 8 years and just wondered (aloud at times) what the hell Bush was doing. Didn't he realize that the strength of our nation is not predicated on how much we can consume but on how widely we can disperse our ideas?? Bush's refusal to look science in the eyes is yet another reason why much of the world looks at us not so much with disdain but with bewilderment (and thus doubt). How could we have strayed so far from the path that has served us so well for so long? I am just glad that Obama has chosen to appoint folks who seem significantly clued into reality (turns out that is rarer than I thought) and also appear to be highly capable.
If Bush has proved anything, it is that the President of the United States must have a high intellect coupled with intellectual curiosity. Simply put, Bush is a dummy. Sarah Palin is cut from the same cloth! Barack Obama is laying the groundwork for a resurgence of American science and technology. Let us hope that his selectees are as practical as they are theoretical.
David Gergen you are one of the few analysts on CNN that I pay attention to. Most of the others are second guessers, speculators and partisan hacks who do nothing to enhance journalism.
Finally! The world will go back to being round instead of flat. The ignorance, denial and hubris of the Bush administration, all because of self serving oil addicts, and the filthy money made from it, are finally going to be put in their place. A strong team of intellectuals, and a president that isnt wearing oil barrel goggles, will be a breath of fresher and less polluted air in our lungs. This last 8 years have been poison in the veins of this country. We may finally see the fall of this dependance on such a dangerous addiction, and the beginning of rehabilitation towards a cleaner, more prosperous way of living.
almos our life is dependent on science , so any sciencetific reseached should be funded to improved lifes. so go on Obama!
I just hope we can believe Obama. Time will tell.
David Gergen,
You are one of the few true political journalists on television today. While many call themselves unbiased, you actually are. In an industry becoming saturated with left wing and right wing journalists you are the voice I listen to.
If we had just told Bush there was oil on Mars and in the asteroid belt, we would have gotten plenty of funding for science and space programs.
CNN is very fortunate to have David Gergen on their roster. We need more of him in our government, universities, and media.
Thank you David Gergen for a very sincere article – president Bush has laid down the american people by siding with the industry in stead of the american people.
There is no time left to act.
This is the worst president America ever produce.
I love this article. Thanks David Gergen...and I must add I watch you on AC 360 nightly and you are by far the most objective analyst out there. Sometimes I'm hoping you would take my side but you don't and then when I listen to you, you make sense. Keep it that way and thank you.
Thanks David for addressing this topic in full detail, I totally agree with you in each point and I wish to focus on the cut on research budget, it really hurt scientists on the past 8 years and many of them lost their jobs because they failed to recruit research money which was on shortage!!! Because of the war budget….talking about stem cell research, US will be behind in crucial promising field of therapy if they continue Bush administration policies, however, many scientists made their way and success in this fundamental research…talking about the global warming issue….Bush administration view it as a political agenda not as a serious issue.
Well said! It's about time we place the proper emphasis on science and technology. Both are critical to future job creation and keeping this country in the forefront.
You gave us GORE vs BUSH and KERRY vs BUSH. Who the hell were we supposed to vote for.
Is there no end to the level of incompetency of Bush/Cheney? Science is about the future of our country and children. It seems that the only thing Bush/Cheney were interested in was the war and making money for their friends. These guys were morally and intellectually bankrupt.
And to all those that think Obama is trying to destory this county. Maybe you should move to Crawford and be with your fearless leader.....W. Because Obama and people that care have a lot work to do...so get out of the way.
Go away mr. gergen. you have been on them scene too long. so bush's incompetence only now worth a mention. it seems you sing to whoever is master. we so it during the clinton years, during the build up to war, during the war & now the new guy is coming in & you are now trying to find an angle by which to ingratiate yourself & get access to his people & stay relevant to the public. just leave us alone & go away. we are here inspite of the likes of you, go away.
David Gergen, as usual, you speak with honesty, sincerity, and great accuracy.
We had 8 Years of a Idiot President that just Lived and Travel on our expense, and did no accomplish nothing but death and war and poor economy, seems like he should be made to pay back the damage he caused and for occupying the White House like it was the Best Western, ....................all he did was live there...................I wish a Lawyer found a loophole to represent Tax Payer in a Massive Law suit to Sue Bush and his aministration............You lose a job for lying..........how many lies has he told and how much tax payer money was gambled with and lost?????? Or Stolen
It's about time!!! Being a scientist myself, the last 8 years under Bush has been a disaster! Bush has reversed so many rules and regulations that it will take Obama years to undo everything! He has poo pooed the debate altogether instead of leading the US in the world on these issues. It is a much better cause than false wars in Iraq which has cost us billions.
As a scientist myself, it is natural to be skeptical of issues until you have scientific fact. However, it is clear that something has to be done on this issue – and Bush has ignored everything and gone in the direction of BIG OIL companies.