Time.com (Time Magazine) ran an article with this title, which supports what I claimed about the "green" agenda losing its footing to the "economic agenda" (the picture is from the Time article). Could going green actually save the economy? The article also contained an interesting idea:

"So what should greens do to avoid irrelevance, now that Hank Paulson is replacing Al Gore as the nation's chief scold? First, tie environmental rescue to economic recovery, by "greening the bailout," as columnist Tom Friedman of the New York Times has put it. As the new Administration — whether Democratic or Republican — searches for ways to stimulate the economy, green infrastructure spending could be the way to go. More money for high-speed rail, tax credits for new solar systems, increased federal funding for renewable energy — these are policies that might not only help stimulate a flagging economy, but directly contribute to slowing the growth in America's carbon emissions. (Not to mention promoting green jobs at a time when unemployment is on the rise.) The challenge will be tactical: convincing Americans that curbing climate change is as much about overhauling a failed economy as it is about limiting carbon emissions. That message didn't get across during the debates over Lieberman-Warner; the next President and Congress will need to do better. "Addressing greenhouse gases and addressing the economy are all part of the same problem," says Barbour. "This is absolutely a top priority. It can't be postponed forever."" (from the article here)

Since there were huge government programs to get the country out of the Great Depression, maybe government programs could get the country out of the current economic funk. Imagine if we had tons of jobs and government money poured into creating a good rail network which could replace 18 wheelers (heck train those guys to run the new trains as a part of the program). We could reduce traffic, reduce emissions, and create jobs. Will it happen - not if either of the corporate candidates are elected (and one will be).