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Published on Friday, April 29, 2005 by Business Week
by John Carey
On Apr. 27, President Bush made an impassioned plea for an energy plan that would wean the U.S. from imported fuels. "Our dependence on foreign energy is like a foreign tax on the American people," he declared in a speech to a gathering of small-business owners and entrepreneurs in Washington.
What the country needs is "a national strategy," Bush said. "And the most important component of our strategy is to recognize the transformational power of technology. By harnessing the power of technology, we're going to be able to grow our economy, protect our environment, and achieve greater energy independence."
Powerful sentiments, indeed. But the words are largely hollow. Sadly, the plan Bush proposed would do little to increase existing supplies of oil, gas, or electricity, or decrease domestic demand for energy -- the two steps that would really make a difference. Charges Frank O'Donnell, head of Clean Air Watch, a Washington-based environmental group: "The new Presidential energy plan seems mainly to be a public-relations stunt aimed at trying to reverse some of the latest polls, which show a growing public discontent with high gas prices -- and the President."
LOW PRIORITY
Of course, environmentalists such as O'Donnell can usually be counted on to bash GOP policies. But in this case the criticism is deserved. Plenty of evidence indicates that the White House's sudden interest in energy policy is driven far more by politics than substantive policymaking.
To understand why, recall the last Presidential election. Democratic candidate John Kerry struck a nerve when he called for reducing American dependence on Middle Eastern oil, saying that "we should rely in American ingenuity and not the Saudi Royal family."
Yet, Kerry failed to turn energy into a significant policy issue in the race. And the White House learned a lesson: You can score political points by talking about energy policy -- without ever needing to follow through. It has been widely reported that Vice-President Dick Cheney privately told top Washington energy-policy wonks after the 2004 election that the Administration would put the issue low on its priority list for 2005.
"RETAKE THIS ISSUE."
That was before oil prices soared, however, and the Republicans started taking a beating, as higher gasoline and home-heating costs made Americans angry and anxious. President Bush's approval ratings dropped, and GOP strategists cited rising fuel costs as the primary rub.
In a strongly worded report to his party in late winter, Republican pollster Frank Luntz warned: "Right now, the Democrats are exhibiting perfect pitch when it come to their energy message.... You need to retake this issue now before the next spike at the pump and before the next surge in our home-heating bills."
Luntz recommended that Republicans hammer hard on four themes: energy independence, national security, the power of innovation and new technology, and the importance of balancing new supplies with conservation. "The energy debate is ripe for partisan picking," he wrote. "Americans loathe the idea of being reliant on the Middle East for our energy needs -- and they were waiting for someone to tell them so."
LAUNDRY LIST
Kerry's remark about not relying on the Saudis was his "single best line at the convention, and it continues to resonate even today," Luntz observed. And in a recent interview with BusinessWeek, Luntz added that if the Administration "stays silent [on energy], it loses."
Luntz's memo is a powerful political document, and the White House took his advice to heart. On Mar. 9, Bush gave a speech hitting all of Luntz's themes. The President called for new technology to reduce America's dependence on imported oil and to increase conservation, and, along the way, to boost national security. Then in his Apr. 27 speech, he repeated the grand ideals -- and offered concrete initiatives. "For the sake of this country, for the sake of a growing economy, and for the sake of national security, we've got to do what it takes to expand our independence," the President said.
Here's what Bush offered as policies needed to meet this ambitious goal:
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