In an interview that Rolling Stone magazine published this week, President Obama said he thinks climate change will be a big issue in the coming election and that he will be "very clear" about his "belief that we're going to have to take further steps to deal with climate change in a serious way." That would be a welcome switch.

Dealing forthrightly with the world's rising temperatures has been far down the list of priorities in Washington. The President has shown little willingness to stick his political neck out on the issue.

Mr. Obama's attempts to revive the Democrats' cap-and-trade plan during the 2010 election season quickly led to nothing. White House rollouts on energy policy have focused mostly on energy independence or green jobs but not on the global threat of warming.

Republicans deserve blame for stifling fair discussion of the issue. And Mr. Obama can cite some achievements: He pushed through landmark fuel-efficiency standards for cars and trucks. He invested in renewable energy sources and energy efficiency through the stimulus. The Environmental Protection Agency has worked on greenhouse-gas rules.

But these won't adequately attack the big problem: how Americans produce and consume energy, particularly electricity. That requires a robust, economy-wide solution, such as a carbon tax or a simple cap-and-trade program.

Mr. Obama expressed frustration that "internationally, we have not made as much progress as we need to make." But inattention from leaders such as the President has contributed to the slow progress at home — a major reason for the slow progress abroad.

A 2007 Foreign Affairs article noted that strong U.S. action is critical to efforts to defeat this "epochal, man-made threat to the planet. ... As the world's largest producer of greenhouse gases, America has the responsibility to lead. While many of our industrial partners are working hard to reduce their emissions, we are increasing ours at a steady clip. ... We need a global response to climate change that includes binding and enforceable commitments to reducing emissions, especially for those that pollute the most: the United States, China, India, the European Union, and Russia."

The writer was Sen. Barack Obama.

Climate change is one of the great challenges of this century. The country needs a debate about policy to address the threat.

We encourage Mr. Obama to follow through, giving the issue the prominence it deserves in this year's election.

— Washington Post

First Published April 27, 2012, 4:00 a.m.