Obama vows to lead global warming fight

"Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama vowed Monday to tell Americans tough truths about global warming, and backed a "cap and trade" system to cut greenhouse gas emissions.

The Illinois senator also argued the lagging US response to climate change was the product of gridlock in Washington -- in a swipe at his top rival Hillary Clinton, whom he portrays as a symptom of a US political malaise.

Obama's plan would see a 150 billion dollar investment in "climate friendly" energy, a bid to slash energy use in the economy and a target of cutting US reliance on foreign oil by at least 35 percent by 2030.

"Some of these policies are difficult politically, they aren't easy," Obama was to say in a speech in New Hampshire, according to excerpts released by his campaign.

"But being president of the United States isn't about doing what's easy. It's about doing what's hard, it's about doing what's right.

"Leadership isn't about telling people what they want to hear -- it's about telling them what they need to hear."

Obama's cap and trade program would cut greenhouse gas emissions to the level recommended by scientists, and he would lead a new drive for a global compact against global warming, his campaign said." |Read more|