Conserve energy, fight terrorism

Although al Qaeda and the Taliban are not yet finished, the new year suggests that we look ahead to the next "phase" of the war. Speculation is rampant inside the Beltway. Some, conspicuously including Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld and Deputy Secretary Paul Wolfowitz, argue for dislodging Iraq\'s Saddam Hussein, while others say Somalia should be next. While such action may be necessary at some point, it is clear that the sine qua non of long-term security is the reduction of America\'s gluttonous appetite for oil.\nThe United States (5 percent of the world\'s population) consumes one-quarter of the world\'s oil. Half of America\'s oil diet is imported -- 2.5 million barrels of oil per day from the Persian Gulf alone. To the extent that our need for oil dictates policy, America is held hostage by our need for foreign oil. As long as we are vulnerable to OPEC price spikes and supply disruptions, we shall remain in a weak position in relation to our strange Middle Eastern bedfellows.\nLiberating ourselves from the grip of oil-rich nations whose people may or may not wish us well means becoming energy independent. To this end, we must develop renewable energies and undertake a rigorous campaign of conservation. This should be the next phase of this war. \nAny realistic energy policy begins with conservation. Sixty percent of America\'s oil diet is consumed on the highways. Simply raising Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards by three miles per gallon (mpg) would save one million barrels of oil per day. Raising CAFE standards to 40mpg for new cars, trucks and SUVs by 2012 would save 3 million barrels per day -- enough to eliminate the need for all Persian Gulf oil and then some.\nAuto manufacturers complain that raising CAFE standards will result in higher consumer prices and hurt their businesses. Such is hardly the case. First, the auto industry could easily achieve this standard tomorrow with technologies like hybrid engines that exist today. Macroeconomic experience also suggests Detroit\'s fears are baseless. After Congress established CAFE standards in 1975, GDP grew at an average of 4.7 percent over the next four years. The economy grew seventeen throughout the next twenty years while auto-industry profits skyrocketed and prices declined. What\'s more, higher CAFE standards save consumers money in gas expenditures (a de facto tax cut), create jobs (an estimated 100,000 over 10 years) and will add an estimated $5.7 billion to GDP. Since 85 percent of the public supports raising CAFE standards, there seems to be no downside to enacting this policy.\nNaturally, CAFE standards are just the beginning. Timely maintenance for cars can potentially save billions of barrels of oil. Hybrid vehicles and fuel cells are promising technologies that should receive developmental funding. We should also boost production in existing oil drilling sites while we develop better hydro-electric, solar and nuclear power resources. These measures can free us from our distasteful liaisons with disreputable nations at a minimal cost and inconvenience.\nAmerica's dependence on oil inhibits its vigorous pursuit of national interest. We must, therefore, create our own reliable supply and make other nations' oil reserves irrelevant to our relations with them. I was gratified when Tom Daschle included energy independence as a plank in the Democrats' 2002 platform. Hopefully, Congress will follow his lead and recognize oil independence as an essential element of long-term national security.