Re: Bipartisan Fire Over Fuel Economy
More:
"The war in Iraq and high prices at the pump are increasingly sensitizing the American public, and we think this is the right time to do this," said Josh Reichert, director of Pew's environment group. "There is a confluence of factors out there that make this the best opportunity that we've had in decades."
The environmentalists are getting a boost from an unlikely quarter: a bipartisan lobbying coalition of big names in the military and corporate suites. Securing America's Future Energy has been telling lawmakers that Americans' security is at risk as long as the country remains dependent on foreign oil, especially Middle Eastern oil. One of its solutions is to bolster fuel economy standards.
The lobby group includes heavyweights such as Frederick W. Smith, chief executive of FedEx, and retired Gen. P.X. Kelley, a former Marine Corps commandant.
The Big Three have been incredibly dense in their recent efforts to fight the prospect of higher fuel efficiency standards.
It is coming. It is inevitable.
Combine concerns about global warming/climate change with national security issues of our dependency on Persian Gulf oil, and you have an inexorable force to bring about change.
This is good news for all of us, and long overdue. We need fuel-efficient vehicles on our roads, not gas-hog SUV's and large pickup trucks. We simply can't go on like we have the last 20 years...
Harry
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