Obama cites ‘overwhelming judgment of science’ and earns a smirk from McCain

Drawing a pained smile from Sen. John McCain, President Barack Obama gave a shoutout to his 2008 election rival at this State of the Union address, saying, "I urge this Congress to pursue a bipartisan, market-based solution to climate change, like the one John McCain and Joe Lieberman worked on together a few years ago."

But the president also mixed some tough words with his call for a bipartisan approach, challenging the wisdom of those who question the validity of global warming.

“We can choose to believe that Superstorm Sandy and the most severe drought in decades and the worst wildfires some states have ever seen were all just a freak coincidence,” Obama said. “Or we can choose to believe in the overwhelming judgment of science—and act before it’s too late.”

Obama then pivoted back to voicing support for some projects more traditionally supported by Republicans, including natural gas. The president then suggested creating an Energy Security Trust that would collect funds from domestic energy sources in order to pursue alternative energy projects that “will drive new research and technology to shift our cars and trucks off oil for good.”

A similar Energy Security Trust was proposed by Connecticut Democrat Rep. John Larson in 2009. Specifically, Larson's bill proposed creating a tax of $15 per metric ton of CO₂ which would then increase by 10 percent each year. However, it's unclear if Obama's proposal is based on similar figures.