The lead editorial in today’s NYT, “Energy Fictions,” is a misguided and misinformed smear of Obama’s outstanding energy proposals. It harshly criticizes a few tiny pieces of Obama’s energy plan that deal with short-term oil strategies, in particular, his willingness to compromise on offshore drilling, and then ends:

Here is the underlying reality: A nation that uses one-quarter of the world’s oil while possessing less than 3 percent of its reserves cannot drill its way to happiness at the pump, much less self-sufficiency. The only plausible strategy is to cut consumption while embarking on a serious program of alternative fuels and energy sources. This is a point the honest candidate should be making at every turn.

The NYT would seem to be accusing Obama of being dishonest — even though it is the other side whose insatiable dishonesty now extends to climate-destroying [and soul-destroying] disinformation (see “here).

Did the NYT even bother listening to any of Obama’s speeches or reading his plan online, rather than, say, listening to the cable news version — or worse, the Republican National Committee version? Obama has a detailed a plan to “cut consumption while embarking on a serious program of alternative fuels and energy sources” — more serious and more comprehensive than any presidential candidate of either party has ever put forward (see “A real energy plan for America: Efficiency now, 10% renewables by 2012, and one million plug-in hybrids by 2015“).

And Obama has said over and over again that offshore drilling will not have any significant impact on US oil production or prices at the pump. But he recognizes that the Republicans have decided to drown out all debate by endlessly shouting the new Newt Gingrich mantra”Drill Here. Drill Now.” As long as the media keeps miscovering the subject, any serious political leader will have to agree to some meaningless drilling to get a serious clean energy program passed.

[As an aside, the NYT helped rehabilitate the eco-image of the virulently anti-environmental Gingrich last year, calling his new book, " A Contract on the With the Earth," part of a "move to the pragmatic center on climate and energy." As if. Gingrich fooling the media by disguising himself as an eco-friendly centrist is about as pathetic as Radovan Karadzic wandering around Belgrade disguised as a New Age doctor.]

But I digress. The entire editorial is as intentionally misinforming as a typical Wall Street Journal ed, but you expect that from the WSJ. The NYT writes of Obama’s energy plan:

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I am technically on vacation for two weeks. That probably means I’ll only be blogging about half as much.

Other Climate Progress news: My brother who lives in Minneapolis has a press pass the GOP convention. He is very good at interviewing, and we’re planning to have him do a bunch of podcast interviews of the delegates on energy and climate issues.

If you have any suggested questions, I’d love to hear them.