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MCCAIN VS. OBAMA ON THE ISSUES: ENERGY

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By BOB DEANS

Cox News Service

WASHINGTON — When a gallon of gasoline began costing as much as a Big Mac, Coke and fries, energy policy shot to the top of the presidential campaign agenda. Nine out of 10 Americans regard skyrocketing energy costs as a pivotal issue, a mid-June USA Today/Gallup poll found.

Both candidates — Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill. — promise energy security through conservation and the pursuit of hybrid cars, solar power and biofuels. They differ sharply, though, on the question of how best to drive down record crude oil prices.

McCain seeks to lift a federal ban on offshore drilling, while Obama proposes a regulatory crackdown on Wall Street speculators he blames for much of the increase in oil prices. Here's how the two candidates' energy plans stack up.

MCCAIN

KEY POSITIONS

— Lift the quarter-century-old congressional moratorium on offshore drilling.

— Suspend the federal gasoline tax of 18.4 cents per gallon for the summer.

— Financial and regulatory incentives to push for building 45 new nuclear power plants by 2030. Backs new nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain in Nevada.

— $300 million prize for the company that can build a low-cost, high-power car battery.

— Tax credits of up to $5,000 for customers who buy low-emissions cars.

— Reduce carbon emissions by 60 percent by 2050.

VERBATIM

"Energy security is the great national challenge of our time. ... By relying on foreign oil, we enrich bad actors in the world, some of whom finance terrorists."

RECORD

— Has voted to block oil drilling in environmentally sensitive Alaska wilderness.

— The League of Conservation Voters gives McCain a lifetime voting record of 26 percent on climate change and other environmental issues. He collected $301,308 — 50 percent above the average for a senator — in contributions from big oil companies between 2002 and 2007, according to the Center for Responsive Politics and the Federal Election Commission.

COST OF PROPOSALS AND HOW TO PAY FOR THEM

The total cost of these proposals isn't clear. McCain would pay for tax credits and other incentives, though, in part through a tax on carbon emissions. McCain proposes a phased-in tax on industrial and electricity plants.

OBAMA

KEY POSITIONS

— Claims his plan would reduce oil consumption by at least 30 percent — or 10 million barrels per day — by 2030.

— Wants 25 percent of U.S. electricity to come from solar, wind, geothermal and other renewable energy sources by 2025.

— Skeptical of new nuclear power plants. Opposes new nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain.

— Calls for regulatory crackdown on speculators he blames for the doubling of crude oil prices over the past year.

— Wants to cut carbon emissions by 80 percent by 2050.

— Would invest $150 billion over 10 years to advance the commercialization of ethanol and other biofuels, hybrid cars, low-emission coal plants and a digitally controlled electricity grid.

VERBATIM

"We have not fallen behind on energy due to a lack of ingenuity or initiative from the American people. ... We can't be afraid to stand up to the oil and auto industry when the future of our economy is at stake."

RECORD

— Supported tax credits to encourage use of ethanol and worked for standards aimed at increasing gas mileage in U.S. cars.

— The League of Conservation Voters gives Obama a lifetime voting record of 96 percent on climate change and other environmental issues. He got $164,340 — about 20 percent below the Senate average — from big oil companies between 2002 and 2007, according to the Center for Responsive Politics and the Federal Election Commission.

COST OF PROPOSALS AND HOW TO PAY FOR THEM

The total cost of these proposals isn't clear. Obama would pay for tax credits and other incentives, though, in part through a tax on carbon emissions. He proposes an immediate tax on industrial and electricity plants.

Bob Deans' e-mail address is bobdeans@coxnews.com

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