The latest, according to "sources close to the transition," is that Obama is thinking of creating an Energy Security Council, modeled on the National Security Council. This was, of course, one of Hillary Clinton’s signature proposals, though she called it the National Energy Council.
Interestingly, the idea seems to be coming from John Podesta, who was a Bill Clinton employee and a Hillary Clinton supporter:
President-elect Obama and his staff are examining a white paper written by former President Bill Clinton’s chief of staff, John Podesta, who is heading up the Obama transition, the sources said.
The outline details how the committee would be formed, the sources said, and addresses how power would be balanced between a new National Energy Council and other White House entities, particularly the Council on Environmental Quality, which now oversees federal agency implementation of environmental policy.
Would this dismiss and/or diminish the head of DOE? EPA? Who knows. I’d love to see that white paper.
Anyway, take all this stuff with a grain of salt. I suspect you can’t swing a dead cat in D.C. right now without hitting someone who will tell you they’re "close to the transition."
