More Energy or Better Regulation?

Press Release

Former Indiana Congressman Mike Sodrel is calling for a shift in energy research funding.

Republican presidential nominee John McCain this week proposed a 300-million-dollar prize for a car battery that significantly reduces reliance on gas. Sodrel's suggesting a similar approach for all kinds of alternative-energy or energy-efficiency projects, instead of simply funding R-and-D.

"When we spend money on R and D, we typically direct it at one institution, and there's a handful of people that are involved. If you offer a prize, you may have 10 million people working on the problem," Sodrel argues.

Sodrel's also calling for more oil drilling, including in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. He says the U-S can't abandon oil while it searches for next-generation fuels.

The Ninth District Republican is trying to reclaim his old seat from incumbent Baron Hill.

Hill has introduced a bill to restore energy futures trading rules repealed in 2000. He says some economists estimate oil prices would drop 20-to-50 dollars a barrel if speculators were pushed out of the market.

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