The Washington Post reported on January 10, 2007, before Barack Obama became a household name, that he co-sponsored a bill supporting the extended use of coal with a senator whose name caught us by surprise.

That's because the Senator's name is Jim Bunning.

The two senators cosponsored the Coal to Liquid Fuel Promotion Act of 2007. The bill would provide incentives On Jan. 4, the same day Stevens introduced his fuel-economy bill, Obama joined with Kentucky Republican Jim Bunning to introduce the Coal-to-Liquid Fuel Promotion Act of 2007.

“Coal-to-liquid (CTL) technology uses a highly energy-intensive process to convert coal into diesel fuel for cars or jet fuel for airplanes -- an appealing prospect to the coal industry in Obama's home state of Illinois, but not to enviros and others concerned about global warming. Obama, who got a 100 percent approval rating from the League of Conservation Voters for his environmental voting record in the Senate last year, is now getting grumbles from greens and thumpings from the press for backing the dirtiest of all fossil fuels for research and plant construction.” www.grist.org/news