Question: What did the Republican-sponsored national energy plan actually do, and what are the implications of this legislation?

Answer: The Republican energy bill that was passed by Congress and signed by President Bush last year is very short-sighted and did very little to move the United States toward energy independence. The bill was loaded up with tax breaks for energy companies (who subsequently recorded record profits) and only provided crumbs to alternative energy sources. What we really need is a national energy strategy that promotes alternative energy sources. Such a strategy could begin by promoting alternative energy sources right here in the Midwest, including soy diesel and ethanol as viable alternatives to imported oil.

Please email your queries to info@russcarnahan.org, with the subject line “Q&A”, and Congressman Carnahan will respond to as many questions as he can. Be sure to include your first name and where you are writing from. If you have a question about a particular piece of legislation, try to include the bill number or as much information as you have.