AP: Obama outlines reform for energy policy

[Colobo]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070507/ap_on_el_pr/obama_autos_9

Obama said his plan encourages domestic automakers to make fuel-efficient hybrid vehicles by giving them health care assistance for retirees. Federal financial assistance would cover 10 percent — up to $7 billion — of automakers' annual legacy health care costs through 2017, under Obama's plan, which would require automakers to invest at least half of their health care savings into technology to produce fuel-efficient cars.

As a second choice, Obama's plan would provide $3 billion to automakers over 10 years to help retool plants to make fuel-efficient cars and trucks.

It's all part of the U.S. auto industry taking necessary steps to help its own turnaround, Obama said.

"Here in Detroit, three giants of American

[Colobo]

1. Kick.

[berni_mccoy]

2. K&R

[Colobo]

3. Obama has no specifics, blah, blah, blah...

[Connie_Corleone]

4. Obama will be coming out with more policy details on healthcare

and other issues these next 2 months.

[Colobo]

5. But Obama's critics don't like to touch these threads...

Why would that be?

[jmowreader]

6. I like Brian Schweitzer's energy policy better

Says the esteemed governor of Montana, we use 4.5 billion barrels of oil a year and import 2.5 billion of them from the world's worst dictators. His plan, which half of y'all scream about because it doesn't mention hydrogen, electric cars or Toyota Priuses, calls for conservation (which you could throw Priuses under, I guess), wind, coal gasification and biofuels.

It does not call for drilling ANWR, propping up Hugo Chavez or invading Iran.

The difference between Schweitzer's plan and everyone else's plan is while everyone else's plans might work in 25 years, Schweitzer's can work in five to ten--because Schweitzer's banking on proven technology.

[Colobo]

7. Let's kick this.

[Colobo]

8. K&R!

[Colobo]

9. Kickin'!

[Telly Savalas]

10. This should be tied to tighter corporate governance at the automakers

If my hard earned tax dollars are to be used to bail out the automakers because their executives were too stupid to make the right decisions over the past decade regarding fuel efficiency, then they shouldn't have their incompetence rewarded with giant compensation packages.

I'm all for a huge public investment in clean renewable energy, but this plan just looks like a giant handout to shareholders in GM and Ford.

[Missy M]

11. Both plans are simply.....

government bail outs to the auto industry. Detroit should have been planning for and producing fuel efficient cars and trucks years ago.

[Colobo]

12. Is Hillary's plan better?

[Missy M]

13. Yes, it is better but....

we are talking about Obama here. His plan sounds like it was written by the CEO of General Motors. Why should taxpayers have to help pay for auto worker retirees health care. Some of us can barely pay for our own.