Edwards: Invest billions in Michigan to make it the hub of the nation's new energy economy

[draft_mario_cuomo]

John Edwards: I'd invest billions in Michigan
Let carmakers lead energy shift, he says

April 22, 2007

BY KATHLEEN GRAY


The U.S. government should invest billions to help Michigan become the hub for transforming the nation's energy economy, Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards said Saturday.

Speaking to more than 1,800 Democrats at the annual Jefferson Jackson dinner at Cobo Center in Detroit, Edwards said he'd like to see Michigan evolve.

"We should put billions of dollars into creation of the new technology and $1 billion should go right to the car companies," he said. "I don't want to see the cars of the future built anywhere else."==

==He said he opposes the trade deal being negotiated between the Bush administration and South Korea. It has faced strong opposition from organized labor.==

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070422/NEWS06/704220692/1068/OPINION

[Olney Blue]

1. Great idea! I like it.

[sandnsea]

2. Good idea when Kerry had it too n/t

[PresidentObama]

7. Hey, I don't mind Edwards adopting Kerry's plans.

;) Even more reasons why I'd support him.

[karynnj]

8. I don't mind either - Kerry had an excellent plan

and was visionary in connecting the gains of major investment in technology here leading to economic gain, jobs, a better environment which leads to better health and less dependence on the middle east. That part of Kerry's speech - repeated often - never seemed to be shown other than on CSPAN. It was one of the reasons I became very enthusiastic about Kerry. His real enthusiasm for these ideas (He's not commerce sub committee chair of Science, Technology and innovation for nothing) was obvious and infectious.

[JDPriestly]

3. Edwards' focus is on the positive. I'm not saying he is the only

positive candidate we have. But I definitely like what I hear about Edwards. Apparently, Iowans really like him. And they know him well. He has spent a lot of time there.

[pstans]

4. Hasn't he said the same thing about Iowa?

[krkaufman]

5. I would agree... so long as the investments were coupled with ...

... replacement of top management, and benchmarks for progress. Those running the US automakers cannot be trusted. (Nor should they be rewarded for their failures. They/we are in this situation because the US automakers opted for high-profit SUVs over fuel efficiency -- likely expecting that they could seek a government bailout if fuel prices ever burst their bubble.)

[knitter4democracy]

6. Amen to that.

We could take on Germany when it comes to solar cells--we have workers who can do that level of manufacturing, and we have the space.