White House confirms plan for provisional targets at Copenhagen talks

My colleague Sam Youngman has a nice rundown of today’s briefing with White House officials on climate change.
 
A few bits and pieces from the briefing caught my eye . . .
 
• Stay tuned over the next few days for – maybe – a clearer sense of what the U.S. will put forward at the big international climate talks in Copenhagen next month. Asked about emissions targets and financing, a senior administration official replied:  “I'm not going to make an announcement here what that's going to be, but I think over the next several days that may become more clear in terms of what the  U.S. might be able to put forward.”

• The briefing backs up what State Department climate envoy Todd Stern said over the weekend [link here to the weekend post citing the Guardian story]: U.S. negotiators plan to offer a provisional domestic emissions-cutting target in the absence of a final U.S. law. Look for it to reflect what the House and Senate are mulling.
 
The House passed a big climate bill in June that requires U.S. emissions cuts of 17 percent by 2020. The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee approved a 20 percent reduction by 2020. “Without getting specific, I think we’re cognizant of what’s passed the House, we’re in close touch with what is being worked on in the Senate, and we’ll try and craft a submission that reflects where we think we can come out,” an official said.
 
•  An announcement about whether President Obama will attend the summit is expected “in the coming days.”