Earth Equity News

McCain and Obama Share Energy Goals, Not Methods. By Ariel Sabar, CSM, June 30, 2008. "With fuel topping $4 a gallon and oil at a record price, energy now ties the economy in polls as voters' top concern, and the presidential candidates spent the past week trying to outflank each other on an issue that's thinning billfolds from Maine to California. Their plans share key goals -- less reliance on foreign oil, a push for cleaner fuels -- but their methods differ sharply. Senator McCain... wants 45 new nuclear power plants by 2030 and an end to the federal moratorium on new offshore drilling. He would use market lures -- tax rebates for electric cars, a $300 million prize for a better car battery -- to promote alternative sources of energy. He would offer motorists immediate relief in the form of a hiatus in the federal gas tax... Senator Obama... opposes new offshore drilling and is wary of nuclear power. He would double auto fuel-efficiency standards within 18 years, subsidize development of ethanol, and force power companies to generate one-quarter of their energy from wind, solar, and other renewable sources by 2025. An opponent of the gas-tax holiday, Obama favors a 'windfall profits' tax on multinational oil companies... In many ways, their approaches square with party ideology. On the Republican side, financial carrots and a significant role for the private sector. On the Democratic side, subsidies, taxes, and regulation. But in a departure from GOP predecessors, McCain has refused to cede the 'green' label to his Democratic rival. His aides say his plan strikes the right balance among short-term relief for consumers, environmental stewardship, and long-term energy independence. They have taken to calling Obama 'Dr. No,' portraying him as an obstructionist with too narrow a view of the country's energy woes."