As oil prices hover around $70 per barrel, payments to oil exporting nations increase month after month, and hurricane damage continues to keep domestic natural gas and oil production below pre-Katrina levels, the Bush Administration has begun to speak more urgently of the need to reduce U.S. dependence on foreign energy suppliers. A blueprint for taking action is set forth in the Energy Policy Act of 2005, while the new Democratic Congress is considering even more radical action to switch to alternative fuels produced in the U.S. Both the 2005 Energy Act and Democratic proposals set forth policies aimed at fostering greater energy efficiency, increased production of biomass and other domestic renewables, and accelerated R&D to produce marketable hydrogen-fuel vehicles and more efficient lighting.
Most Presidential candidates are also highlighting many of these goals, but the more compelling story is told daily by statistics gathered by the Department of Energy, which reports that the U.S. depends on foreign suppliers for 60% of its oil supplies; the Government Accountability Office, which estimates that by 2040 federal revenues may be adequate to pay only some Social Security benefits and interest on the Federal debt; and the Department of Defense, which could produce a hollow army if it continues to sends troops abroad to both spread freedom and democracy and protect energy supplies that are vital to the United States.
The non-partisan Center is deeply concerned that our nation is losing its freedom of action. In response to this challenge, in 2001, the Center began counseling senior White House, Treasury, State and Congressional officials on aspects of global economic leadership, focusing initially on the dangers of economic “contagion” in industrial and emerging nations. CSP next organized a dialogue on Middle East economics for then-Treasury Secretary John Snow and, more recently, the Center has been invited by the Government Accountability Office to increase awareness of the implications of America’s exploding budget, trade and entitlement debts.
Currently, CSP is conducting series of policy roundtables, which bring together policy makers, scholars, financiers, business people, and political leaders. These sessions will identify near-term strategies for managing the economic and security facets of the energy challenge, and examine longer-term policy, research and educational strategies related to the issues of energy and national security as well as reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. Participants meet in separate working groups, and a report on key findings will be shared with the Administration, Congressional leaders, the public policy community and the media.
Looking Forward in Wartime: Vulnerable Points in the Global Economy, by Richard T. McCormack, former Undersecretary of State for Economic Affairs and G-7 Sherpa, former Ambassador to the Organization of American States, and currently Counselor to the Center for the Study of the Presidency, provides key insights into this complex issue.
For more information on the Center’s Geo-Economics and Energy Program, please contact Thomas Kirlin, Vice President, at 202-872-9800 or via e-mail.
