Bush offers plans to cut foreign oil use

MILWAUKEE -- Saying the nation is on the verge of technological breakthroughs that would ''startle" most Americans, President Bush yesterday outlined his energy proposals to help wean the country off foreign oil.

Less than half the crude oil used by US refineries is produced in the United States, while 60 percent comes from foreign nations, Bush said during the first stop on a two-day trip to talk about energy. Some foreign suppliers have ''unstable" governments that have fundamental differences with America, he said. ''It creates a national security issue and we're held hostage for energy by foreign nations that may not like us," Bush said.

One of Bush's proposals would expand research into smaller, longer-lasting batteries for electric-gas hybrid cars, including plug-ins. He highlighted that initiative with a visit to the auto parts supplier Johnson Controls Inc. in Milwaukee.

Bush is also focusing on a proposal to increase investment in development of clean electric power sources, and proposals to speed the development of biofuels such as ''cellulosic" ethanol made from wood chips or sawgrass.

Conservation groups and environmentalists say they're pleased that Bush, a former oil man, is stressing alternatives, but contend his proposals don't go far enough. They say the administration must consider greater fuel-efficiency standards for cars, and some economists believe it's best to increase the gas tax to force consumers to change driving habits.

On Saturday, Bush renewed his push for the expansion of nuclear energy. ''As America and other nations build more nuclear power plants we must work together to address two challenges," Bush said in a radio address. ''We must dispose of nuclear waste safely, and we must keep nuclear technology and material out of the hands of terrorist networks and terrorist states."

The administration has asked Congress for $250 million next fiscal year to accelerate a decade-long research program into reprocessing nuclear fuel.

At Johnson Controls, Bush checked out two Ford Escapes -- one with a nickel-metal-hybrid battery, the kind that powers most hybrid-electric vehicles, and one with a lithium-ion battery, which Johnson Controls believes are the wave of the future.

The lithium-ion battery was about half the size of the nickel metal battery. In 2004, Johnson Controls received a government contract to develop the lithium-ion batteries.

''Our nation is on the threshold of new energy technology that I think will startle the American people," Bush said. ''We're on the edge of some amazing breakthroughs."

Bush also visited the United Solar Ovonics Plant, which makes solar panels, in Auburn Hills, Mich. The company also works on hydrogen fuel cells to power autos.

Democratic US Representative Edward Markey of Massachusetts questioned Bush's energy policies, saying the administration also supports subsidies for luxury SUVs.

''This single tax subsidy dwarfs anything being done for hybrid batteries," Markey said.