The NYT writes [subscription required] a rah-rah editorial post-Gore hearing. The paper commends Gore for getting Congress to finally listen to him -- 25 years after he was a member of the House (ouch). But what really strikes a chord after reading the editorial is just how much the political climate has changed around climate change.

Think about it: Clinton and Gore could not find five senators to ratify the 1997 Kyoto treaty. This was a treaty that called for only a seven percent reduction below 1990 levels, with no further reductions scheduled after 2012.

To give this some perspective, right now, there are five climate change bills in Congress. Last week, Rep. Henry Waxman (D-California) introduced a notably aggressive climate change bill. The Safe Climate Act of 2007 (H.R. 1590) would freeze greenhouse gas emissions by 2010 and reduce them by 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050. He had 127 co-sponsors for the bill.