McCain: Thinks Detroit can do a better job producing more fuel efficienct vehicles and promote hydrogen & ethanol fuel, no specific plans to back that up. Inadvertently he could be the greatest proponent of fuel efficient vehicles and reducing green house gases. He is a firm believer in nuclear power as the main way to energy independence, something no other leader would dare say, even though its the only realistic solution. The next generation of plug in hybrids will need to get their electricity somewhere's - like coal and oil powered electrical plants. McCain would supply those plug-ins power from nuclear power, thus reducing foreign oil dependency and eliminating green house gas production.

Obama: Seems to be a 'Johnny come lately' regarding the environment and fuel efficient cars. Has no serious record prior to running for presidency. Gave up his gas guzzler in Oct2007 after he realized it was politcally incorrect. I haven't heard too many specifics from his speeches on what he will do, generally he claims he will just support the developement of better cars and ethanol. He does want to change the tax credit for hybrid vehicles so that there is no cap by manufacturer.

Clinton: Seems to have a longer track record than any other candidate and has put forth specific plans to advance fuel efficiency and energy independence. Plan: Investing $2 billion in hybrid car battery research, Adding 100,000 PHEVs to the federal fleet by 2015, Offering consumers tax credits of up to $10,000 for purchasing a plug-in hybrid

Mr Fezziwig, administrator for Green Cars Now, http://www.greencarsnow.com , a website promoting fuel efficient cars and cleaner alternative fuels and Car Repair Ratings http://www.carrepairratings.com , a website devoted to consumer reviews of auto repair work.

Gee, you don't sound biased at all. Um, ... right.

If you happen to want a few actual facts, instead of just opinions, I have a few relating to Obama, because you haven't bothered to do any research on his record in this area, and I want to be completely open about the fact that I think Obama is the best candidate.

First, Obama sponsored a bill in the Senate in 2005, the year he took office, called "Health Care for Hybrids," which can be found here:
http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c109:s.2045:

It's goal: "To provide incentives to the auto industry to accelerate efforts to develop more energy-efficient vehicles to lessen dependence on oil."

It provided money for some of the health care costs for retired auto workers (the ones whose retirement plans were being dumped at that time) on the condition that some of the savings to the car companies be put towards retooling existing domestic plants to build hybrids, researching new hybrid designs or technology, or producing high performance fuel efficient vehicles. Sounds like it would have been a pretty great deal for our domestic auto companies, not to mention their retirees. Here's a summary:
http://www.hybridcars.com/plans-for-...r-hybrids.html

Secondly, Obama authored a bill in 2006 to increase the CAFE standards, called the Fuel Economy Reform Act, which can be found here:
http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/...9OCjkeZ:e7557:
He's worked on legislation for renewable fuels and biodiesel, which are here:
Biofuels Security Act, http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c110:s.23: and here: Alternative Diesel Standard Act of 2006 http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c109:s.3554:

Recently, he helped to author the National Low Carbon Fuel Standard Act (S. 1324), and he has introduced two bills relating to the oil industry, the Oil SENSE Act and the FILL UP Act, which I believe would create programs to get the oil industry to invest in E85 pumps (which isn't an idea I'm actually that crazy about, for reasons too long to go into here).

It's possible to object, as some do, that a legislator shouldn't 'get credit' for proposing legislation that doesn't become law. I think several of these ideas would have a much better chance of becoming law if Obama became President, and secondly, I would put the blame for delay on increases to the CAFE standards squarely on Bush's shoulders, since there isn't a lot a single Senator can do when the President threatens to veto legislation and the override votes aren't there.

To top it off, however, Barack Obama has authored a piece of Hybrid Car legislation that has ****actually become law!**** It was an Amendment to the 2005 Energy Policy Act, HR. 6 (SA 851), which provided a total of $40 million for research into combination flex/fuel and plug-in or regular hybrid cars, $20 million for this year alone. It was to "to establish a Joint Flexible Fuel/Hybrid Vehicle Commercialization Initiative," and here is the text of the amendment.
http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/...:FLD001:S07266

How about a real $800 rebate for buying a Hybrid no limit on numbers but must keep atleast one year. Accelerated depreciation for businesses that buy and use hybrids. Just for starters

Ducit Amour Hybridae
Mark Smith
Master Certifited Technician
Tempus non reparabilis fugit
"It isn't pollution that's harming the environment. It's the impurities in our air and water that are doing it."

Best Tank 35.0 MPG

Let's face it - both the dems are pretty green and the likely Republican is pretty green. So win-win. My $.02 is that dems have to say they are green ... if a Republican does it - I bet he really means it. Who can and will get more done is hard to say but don't forget "Only Nixon could go to China".

Why just hybrids?

If I buy a 70mpg Lupo (currently unavailable in the U.S. but that may change)... don't I deserve a "pat on the back" too? i.e. Don't I deserve a rebate? I'm helping the environment by using less oil and reducing pollution up the chain.

Yes.

- reading -----

It needs to be determined by:

• total mileage - not just a highway but incorporate the urban loop too
• mileage/seat - not just the absolute vehicle mileage but the vehicle performance per seat or 1,000 weight of payload. In fact, the performance metric should be at maximum vehicle weight, not just the driver.

This normalizes the performance versus the 1980s 'race to the bottom' to make the smallest possible vehicle to meet a fleet average. It rewards vehicle efficiency as a function of payload.

When you look at mileage/seat, you find the two-seat Insight looks pretty weak compared to the five seat Prius. Using payload, even the Camry and Escape begin looking pretty good. But it must include the urban mileage as well as the highway miles.

Bob Wilson

Operation Iraqi Oil Freedom:

Automatic, stock, project car.

My other 1500 cc car:

Automatic, stock, backup car.
Free speech, dialog and knowledge thrives without the poison of SPAM.

I can't give him too much credit for this one. It included an $85,000,000 perk for research into the liquification of coal, and about 1/3 of it went to Southern Illinois University.

also,
This was a big giveaway to big oil to get them to put in E-85 pumps that sold fuel derived from corn, a major midwest, and Illinois, crop. The people who got the money were defined in the bill as follows:

`(ii) MAJOR OIL COMPANY- The term `major oil company' means any person that, individually or together with any other person with respect to which the person has an affiliate relationship or significant ownership interest, has not less than 4,500 retail station outlets according to the latest publication of the Petroleum News Annual Factbook."

So, in fact, he was doing what a Senator from Illinois should do and getting giveaways and markets for his state, where corn is king and coal is plenty.

Oh, and by the way, Clinton co-sponsered the "Health Care for Hybrids Act".

It is the ignorant among us that will eventually destroy us all.

We also take into consideration what the candidates drive. Hillary Clinton does own a hybrid SUV. Obama, on the other hand, drives a Chrysler 300 that gets less than 20 MPG. Huckabee drives a Dodge RAM that gets something in the low teens. Anyone know what McCain drives?

Obama traded in his 300C late last year for an Escape Hybrid. Last I heard McCain owns a Cadillac DHS.

Owned is one thing. Used (driven) is another.

I'll bet that Obama's, Hillary's and Edwards' Escapes have very few miles on them. Just like George's pickup truck. Political window dressing to attract their electorate.

And for some breaking news - John Kerry just traded in his 30 MPG Escape Hybrid for a 20 MPG Tahoe Hybrid!

The aforementioned Lupo 3L still gets 70mpg combined (88 highway/62 city). And it has room for five. So it would qualify for the tax credit, per your rules.

I don't know. I see a lot of Priuses on the HOV that are carrying *exactly* the same number of people as my Insight. 1.

- reading -----