Bush Expected to Highlight Energy and Environmental Concerns in State of the Union Address

Energy and environmental issues are expected to figure prominently in President Bush’s 2007 State of the Union address to Congress and the American people this evening [broadcast live at 9 p.m. EST]. And no matter how the president plays it, his speech is sure to be seen by many observers as a de facto report card on the energy policies of his administration.

One year ago, during his 2006 State of the Union address, President Bush said "America is addicted to oil" and set a goal to replace 75 percent of America’s oil imports from the Middle East by 2025. As part of his strategy for reaching that goal, the president promised to push hard for renewable energy and alternative fuels that would take the place of oil and for more efficient use of energy to help reduce demand.

One year later, President Bush has yet to live up to his promises nor has he taken significant steps toward his goal of ending America’s addiction to oil.

President Bush and America’s Addiction to Oil
Bush supporters argue that the president has begun the process of reducing American dependence on foreign oil by opening more U.S. lands and coastal waters to oil and gas drilling, such as his recent executive order to allow oil and gas exploration in the fragile environment of Alaska’s Bristol Bay, but that does nothing to lessen America’s growing demand for finite petroleum resources.

Although Bush pledged to expand the use of renewable energy sources and alternative fuels and to find other ways to reduce the demand for oil, he has done little to follow through on those commitments. During the past year, the president cut overall funding for renewable energy research, energy-saving technologies and conservation programs, continued to oppose mandated caps on carbon emissions, and fought recent efforts by Congress to eliminate unnecessary subsidies and tax breaks for oil companies that have been earning record profits from sky-high gasoline prices.

According to U.S. Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman, the Bush administration has spent about $12 billion over the past six years to develop new energy technologies. That figure includes the $2.1 billion "advanced energy initiative" the president mentioned in his State of the Union address a year ago. But that program is devoted primarily to nuclear research and clean coal technology and does little to reduce American dependence on oil, because 70 percent of the oil used in the United States goes for transportation. The president also engaged in a little political sleight-of-hand, financing modest budget increases for wind power and solar power research by eliminating other renewable energy programs.

What to Expect During the 2007 State of the Union Address
In his 2007 State of the Union address tonight, President Bush is expected to call for greater use of plant-based ethanol as an alternative or additive to gasoline, increased production of hybrid vehicles, and new fuel economy standards for passenger cars. President Bush and Congress have been at a standstill over establishing new fuel economy standards for passenger vehicles, with the president saying Congress must grant him special authority to raise the standards, and many members of Congress saying he should use his existing authority to make the change.

Given the administration’s track record, however, it is difficult to predict the effectiveness of such a change. The president’s new fuel economy standards for light trucks, announced less than two months after the 2006 speech, were generally considered too weak to be effective at reducing oil consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.

Another topic on the president's agenda for tonight's speech is global warming, a subject he has rarely been willing to discuss or even acknowledge in real terms. Bush made a campaign promise in 2000 to significantly reduce U.S. emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming, but he backed away from that promise after taking office in 2001 by refusing to ratify the Kyoto Protocol. Since then, Bush has vigorously opposed any proposals that included mandatory limits on greenhouse gas emissions, and his administration has been accused repeatedly of trying to muzzle government scientists to prevent them from speaking publicly about research that shows serious consequences related to global warming.

In his speech tonight, the president is expected to discuss global warming and to call for a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, but many environmentalists fear he will continue to urge only voluntary cuts, offering companies incentives rather than setting strict standards backed up by penalties for those that fail to comply.

Bush is also expected to call for a renewed U.S. commitment to nuclear power. No new orders for U.S. nuclear facilities have been issued since the 1979 nuclear accident at Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania. The 1986 Chernobyl accident, generally considered the worst nuclear accident to date, further solidified public and political opinion against nuclear power. Recently, however, increased concerns about global warming and dependence on foreign oil have sparked new interest in nuclear power, despite the ongoing problems of trying to regulate and safely dispose of radioactive waste that remains hazardous for up to 100,000 years.

The Politics of Energy
As President Bush prepares his 2007 State of the Union address, he faces a dramatically different political landscape than he faced a year ago. The 2006 elections in November gave Democrats control of both houses of Congress, weakening the president politically and potentially making it more difficult for him to push through his legislative agenda.

What is increasingly clear is that President Bush needs to stop talking about the need for renewable energy, alternative fuels and increased energy efficiency and start taking concrete steps to achieve those goals. A report last week by the General Accountability Office said "it is unlikely" that the government's current research and development programs will provide the renewable and alternative energy sources needed to "reverse our growing dependence on imported oil."

If President Bush is serious about ending America’s addiction to oil, then he needs to show us during his final two years in the White House that he is not addicted to empty rhetoric. He must provide the leadership and make the investments that are necessary to wean America away from oil and to set the nation on a course toward energy independence.

Learn More about the State of the Union Address:

• State of the Union Address -- by Kathy Gill, About U.S. Politics: Current Events
• A Brief History of the State of the Union Address -- by Robert Longley, About U.S. Government Info/Resources