Is nuclear energy safe? Can it really meet all of our energy needs? Powering America answers these questions and more by pulling back the veil on nuclear energy and follows the men and women who work in America's nuclear power industry. Read More.
A recent Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) report defines and counts the green jobs in the American economy.[1] Cheerleaders for the President’s program of green jobs mandates and spending point to the study as confirmation of green jobs’ economic importance. However, analysis of the BLS data provides more…
Abstract: Government spending has been spiraling upward—and spending by nearly all government agencies can, and should, be cut. President Obama has just submitted his 2013 budget request to Congress, providing fertile ground for spending cuts.The Department of Energy (DOE), with its many research, development,…
David Kreutzer comments on the Chevy Volt on WTIC. …
FYI: Heritage WebMemos are now called Issue Briefs. The national average for gas prices is almost $3.60 per gallon, increasing 40 cents from a year ago and jumping 20 cents from just one…
Two federal policies expired at the close of the year: the federal tax credit for blending ethanol into gasoline and a 54 cent-per-gallon tariff on imported ethanol. A diverse group of fiscal watchdogs, environmentalists, and free-trade proponents all hailed this as a major victory. While the tax credit and tariff…
The U.S. House of Representatives recently passed H.R. 2360, the Providing for Our Workforce and Energy Resources (POWER) Act, which according to its sponsor, Representative Jeff Landry (R–LA), would “close a loophole in existing law that allows offshore renewable energy resources to be installed and serviced by foreign workers.”…
From The Heritage Foundation, I'm Ernest Istook. …
Abstract: The Clean Energy Deployment Administration (CEDA) proposed in the Clean Energy Financing Act would act as a “green bank” to provide loan guarantees to energy and automotive projects that Washington deems worthy. Similar to President Obama’s proposed infrastructure bank, in effect, CEDA would…
Think we could use 5 million new jobs right about now? That's what President Obama promised he'd create by "investing" taxpayer money in so-called green jobs. And not just any jobs, he said on the campaign trail in 2008, but ones that "pay well, and can never be outsourced." …
With multiple wars ongoing, traditional threats looming, and new ones emerging, the U.S. Armed Forces are already under tremendous stress. So introducing a new assignment that needlessly bleeds scarce resources away from core missions to advance a political agenda is untenable. Yet this is exactly what the Obama Administration is…
Abstract: Renewable energy—harnessing the power of the wind and the sun—sounds wonderful until confronted with the facts. While wind and sun are indeed free, turning their energy into consumer-accessible electricity is not. Nor is it easy. Wind power must be used at the moment…
European policy makers and environmental groups want to restrict imports—but not in order to save the planet. A recent article in the New York Times featured unsubstantiated accusations by Greenpeace that Indonesian pulp, paper, and palm oil conglomerate Sinar Mas is “secretly planning a massive expansion…
America is currently facing energy challenges reminiscent of the 1970s. Unfortunately, rising gas prices have policymakers repeating the mistakes from that decade -- mistakes that took a bad situation and made it worse.[1] Then, as now, good energy policy is easy to distinguish from bad energy policy: Good…
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) departments are much in vogue among Fortune 500 companies, but what do they really do? In Africa, Asia, Latin America, and elsewhere around the world, large corporations frequently boast about the social welfare CSR projects they fund as a way for them to "give…
America’s current system for responding to oil spills was largely shaped by the reaction to the 1989 Exxon Valdez tanker spill off Alaska. The Oil Pollution Act of 1990 set up new procedures for offshore cleanups, one significant change being that the federal government, led by the U.S. Coast …
Will shifting the United States military to alternative fuels reduce casualties and geopolitical threats? That is what some are contending.[1] Their answers focus on two main factors: the material and human costs of transporting fuel in a battle zone and oil revenues received by unfriendly regimes. Digging just…
Abstract: Rising oil and gas prices are a concern to consumers, Congress, and the Obama Administration. The impact of higher oil prices goes far beyond the gas pump and affects the U.S. economy, as a new Heritage Foundation analysis shows. In addition to unrest…
Gasoline prices are steadily rising toward $4 per gallon, the price that triggers public outcry and congressional response. In a recent interview, Senator Lindsay Graham (R–SC) said that at $4 gasoline, “everybody is tripping over themselves to find an energy policy.”[1] Graham then mentioned he would start work…
During a speech this week, President Obama presented Congress with a 5-point to-do list, which, as the President...…
Do bank robbers stimulate economic growth? If you employ the logic used by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory...…
In case you missed it, there was quite a performance in the U.S. Senate yesterday. Liberals put on an election-year...…
There's more bad news in the continuing saga of the Chevy Volt. The Associated Press is reporting today that General...…
For President Barack Obama, 2011 began with a bang -- a bold pronouncement that his green dream for America would bring...…
How's this for a waste of taxpayer money? According to Energy& Environment News, the Department of Energy is paying...…
It's been a mixed day in the world of the American auto industry. While Ford Motor posted huge sales for November --...…
Senator Max Baucus (D–MT) isn’t shy about picking winners and losers. Last December, he led the charge to keep in place...…
Last week, The Washington Post pointed out one near-fatal flaw to Obama’s plans for subsidizing green energy and...…
What was normally a peaceful, quiet way of life for residents of Vinalhaven, an island off the coast of Maine, suddenly...…