Ford Addresses Oil Costs, Concerns

Congressman Harold Ford Jr. (D-Tenn.) expects energy and oil to be hot topics for the new legislative session, and the moderate-liberal Democrat is prepared to weigh in when the time comes (hat tip: Harold Ford Jr. For U.S. Senate 2006 unofficial blog). “We will certainly revisit renewable energy sources,” Rep. Ford, Jr. told students at a University of Tennessee event. “The legacy that we will all leave in post- 9/11 America must be to secure more energy sources. With the technology we have today, we could not be dependent in 10 years.”

He also commented on the volume of conversations centering on tapping into the nation’s emergency oil reserve. “I may be in the minority in my party, but I believe that an emergency reserve is just that, for emergencies,” the five-term congressman said. “Sure, we may be paying a lot of money for gas, but that’s not an emergency. It’s poor planning on our part.” Rep. Ford, Jr. believes emphasis should be placed on finding more energy sources. He supports nuclear options if safety and community health can be ensured. He added that the first step is to ask automakers to increase the mile-per-gallon capabilities of their products and to remain competitive in the global sphere.