Clinton, Podesta to talk climate change at Senate Democrats' Tuesday lunch

Former President Bill Clinton and Center for American Progress CEO John Podesta will be guests at the Senate Democrats' weekly caucus lunch Tuesday, and climate change and energy will be major topics in their discussion with lawmakers.

Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), who is trying to craft a compromise climate bill, said last month that he had recently spoken to Clinton about the economic dimensions of the issue, and noted that Clinton would be briefing the caucus. Clinton is expected to emphasize that tackling climate change is vital to ensuring U.S. competitiveness in emerging "clean" energy sectors.

Podesta served as Clinton's White House chief of staff and also co-chaired President Obama’s transition team. His liberal think tank has long advocated for legislation that would impose limits on greenhouse gas emissions and accelerate a transition to low-carbon energy sources.