Bush takes energy plan on the road

Bush takes energy plan on the road

	Published : Wed, 24 Jan 2007 18:14 By : Agencies Print this Story

WILMINGTON, Del. (AFX) - 0123dv--bush--energy

President Bush, looking for any momentum from his State of the Union address, campaigned Wednesday for an energy plan that targets Americans' gas-guzzling habits.

On a quick trip to Delaware, Bush warned that the nation's reliance on oil poses a national security threat. The United States must come to rely on its own sources of fuels, not the oil-rich lands of those who pose dangers to the nation, he said.

'You don't want your president sitting in the Oval Office worried about the activities of a hostile regime that can have all kinds of impacts on our security, starting with economic security,' Bush told employees of DuPont, one of the largest researchers of alternative fuels.

'Dependence on oil, as well, means that if a terrorist were able to destroy infrastructure somewhere else in the world it's going to affect what you pay at the gasoline pump,' Bush said.

Bush's comments came as the White House tried to keep some attention on his domestic agenda.

Meanwhile, in Washington, a rising number of senators from Bush's own party expressed doubts that his Iraq strategy will work. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee planned to vote on condemning Bush's troop buildup, as the war continued to vastly overshadow his domestic agenda.

Bush's new energy initiative calls for reducing gasoline consumption by up to 20 percent over 10 years by increasing alternative fuels and changing the way fuel economy standards are set for passenger cars.

The president signed an executive order Wednesday to cut down on the federal government's use of gasoline and increase its use of alternative fuels.

In Delaware, Bush toured the DuPont Experimental Station to tout to its research on cellulosic ethanol -- one of the main fuels Bush touts as an alternative to oil.

He took a hands-on approach as scientists walked him through the process of converting raw materials to fermentable sugars to fuel. Bush picked up bottles of milled corn stover, poked his fingers into a beaker of wood chips and picked up a handful of switchgrass.

'What our citizens got to know is that because of the research you are doing here -- with some of their taxpayers' money to help you -- that switchgrass ... could end up being the fuel that powers their automobiles,' Bush said in the DuPont greenhouse. 'That's important.'

DuPont is leading a science-based consortium that is researching how to break down entire corn plants -- including the stalk and leaves -- into biofuels, such as cellulosic ethanol. Corn kernels are used for the ethanol now in gasoline.

In his comments to DuPont workers, Bush said the day is coming when people can commonly use plug-in batteries for their cars. The United States is spending public money on such research.

'You are going to be able to drive the first 20 miles on electricity -- and your car is not going to have to look like a golf cart,' Bush said.

Bush has rejected requiring automakers to boost the fuel economy of their new car fleets, and he continues to oppose mandatory reductions of so-called 'greenhouse' gases.

With Democrats running Congress and his own popularity slumping, Bush could offer only a modest agenda. His energy plan, along with a health insurance program, were the signature items.