Fuel talk drives Bush in right direction

A couple months after the worst political year of his presidency
““ which included a blundered response to Hurricane Katrina,
continued violence in Iraq and warrantless wiretapping of American
citizens ““ President Bush has started to move in the right
direction. In one area, at least.

The president ““ whose approval ratings are lingering
around 40 percent, according to recent polls ““ has spent the
past two days touring the country to promote his new emphasis on
alternative energy sources and reducing U.S. reliance on foreign
oil.

It was a promise he voiced in his State of the Union address
last month, and Americans have been curiously waiting to see how he
would follow through.

During a stop Monday in Milwaukee, Wis., Bush visited Johnson
Controls’ hybrid battery factory to look at concept hybrid
cars being developed with the help of government funds.

At the last stop of his tour Tuesday, he spoke at the National
Renewable Energy Lab in Colorado, saying he has “spent a lot
of time worrying about the national security implications of being
addicted to oil.”

Especially skeptical observers could dismiss Bush’s
promises to give increased funding to alternative energy, both this
week and in his State of the Union speech, as merely a wounded
politician paying lip service to his critics ““ and they might
be right.

But as an editorial board that has been in the “skeptical
observer” camp for most, if not all, of Bush’s
presidency, we’re cautiously optimistic about his efforts
now. Dare we say it?

Good … work … Mr. President.

There, that wasn’t so bad.

In this most recent campaign, Bush has undoubtedly caught the
attention of many Californians, especially us Angelenos, who
sometimes treat our cars with an importance usually reserved for
vital organs.

California ““ which in 2004 landed four of the top five
spots in the American Lung Association’s “Most polluted
U.S. cities” list ““ clearly has a pollution
problem.

And the emphasis California lawmakers have recently placed on
alternative energy issues, such as free carpool lane passes for
hybrid car owners, shows an interest in finding ways to address
that problem.

For once, perhaps, Bush’s newfound interest in alternative
energy will put him in step with this state.

But while the lip service and recognition is nice, Bush would
have to take a couple more steps to really prove his dedication to
weaning the country off foreign oil.

A big one would be to mandate large increases in the fuel
efficiency of automobiles, which would encourage struggling U.S.
automakers to look less at the gas-guzzling SUV model and more
toward hybrid, diesel and fuel cell technology.

It’s true that companies like General Motors and Ford may
already be moving in that direction because of market pressures.
But a little nudge from the federal government ““ and some
stricter enforcement of fuel efficiency standards ““
wouldn’t hurt.

The bottom line is that more energy efficiency and less
dependence on foreign oil ““ the import of which costs us $3
billion a week ““ has always made sense, so long as it
doesn’t translate into energy companies cannibalizing the
American wilderness.

Hearing the president say that ““ and, more importantly,
seeing him act on it ““ would be a breath of fresh air.