Everybody wants a little bit of Al Gore action these days, at least when it comes to the election later this year. Last week U.S. Rep. Tim Mahoney even went as far as to say Gore could be elected president himself if the two frontrunner Democrat candidates end up in a deadlock for the party nomination. However Barack Obama isn't ready to give up the idea of taking up residence in the White House just yet and is also vying for Gore's endorsement, throwing his hat into the ring this week by saying he would make Gore and integral part of the Cabinet if he is elected to office.

"...I will make a commitment that Al Gore will be at the table and play a central part in us figuring out how we solve this problem. He's somebody I talk to on a regular basis. I'm already consulting with him in terms of these issues, but climate change is real. It is something we have to deal with now, not 10 years from now, not 20 years from now."

"All of us are going to have to change our habits. We are a wasteful culture," he said.

Using compact fluorescent light bulbs, energy efficient appliances, and unplugging power chargers when they're not in use are relatively simple solutions, he said. "Those kinds of simple steps, if everybody takes them, can drastically reduce our energy consumption."

Obama is proposing a cap-and-trade system to reduce pollution caused by carbon emissions, but warned that could cause higher electricity bills from power companies. Under the new system, Obama would use some of the income to subsidize the cost for lower or fixed-income customers.

» Huffington Post