White House defers to Hill in climate bill push

Don’t expect a sweeping White House climate and energy proposal any time soon.

While the administration has become newly assertive in the healthcare fight by floating its own overhaul plan, White House climate and energy czar Carol Browner said Tuesday that a repeat performance isn’t in the offing right now.

Instead, she said the White House is very engaged in the effort to get a climate and energy bill done but leaving lawmakers to craft the guts of the measure.

The main action is in the Senate, where Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) are trying to craft a compromise plan.

“They need to look at what they think is important and we can respond to that,” said Browner, although she is also working with the trio.

She was similarly deferential when asked about a competing climate proposal floated by Sens. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine.), noting that the White House goal is a package that can get 60 votes and ideally many more.

“Right now, for us to say it’s this or it’s that is very premature,” she said at a climate conference hosted by The New Republic magazine at the National Press Club.

“We are going to continue to work with the members who have expressed interest to see what is possible,” she later added. “At this point in time we are not going to put forward legislative proposals because we think that the work that is going on up on the Hill is moving at a nice speed.”

Kerry said at the same forum that the measure he’s crafting with Graham and Lieberman was coming soon, but didn’t offer a specific timeline.