Barack Obama is seriously considering the creation of an Energy Security Council within the White House, according to sources close to the transition.
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.
A key Obama aide would not confirm the likelihood of a new council, but some sources suggested Podesta might be eyeing the post for himself.
Podesta, however, has e-mailed his staff at the Center for American Progress, where he is CEO, that he will not be joining the Obama administration after the transition.
Another possibility to head the council is Carol Browner, an administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency in the Clinton administration who’s now playing a key role on Obama’s transition team.
During the campaign, there was talk that Obama would consider naming some sort of White House “energy czar,” and this new council could be part of such a move.
“U.S. energy policy could benefit from coordination that considers cross-cutting environmental and supply issues,” said Scott Segal, director of the Electric Reliability Coordinating Council. “But the devil is in the details. A council that is staffed by members with too many preconceived notions could overly restrict energy supply and drive up prices.”
Some other lobbyists worry, too, that such a new council might overshadow the EPA and the Energy Department by decreasing their direct contact with the president.
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