The President Asks for the Power to Increase Fuel Economy Standards

The President Asks for the Power to Increase Fuel Economy Standards

After six years of expanding Presidential powers in many spheres, President Bush has called on Congress to give him power to increase the fuel economy standards on cars - authority which he apparently already has. Representative Edward J. Markey (D-MA), a senior Member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee and a co-author of a bipartisan bill to raise Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards, today found it curious that the Bush Administration would ask for powers it already had been given.

"Yesterday, the President ‘encouraged' Congress to give him authority that he already has to address fuel economy standards. I find it hard to believe that a President who has claimed the authority to eternally detain prisoners, resort to torture in certain cases, and wiretap American citizens without consulting Congress feels that he needs permission from Congress to mandate that cars be made more fuel efficient!

"The President has given a lot of lip service to doing what it takes to get the job done. He declares earnestly his intention to break America's addiction to oil, but he won't walk the walk. Stop stalling, Mr. President. Use the authority you have to mandate better fuel efficiency for cars.

"President Kennedy demonstrated leadership when he pushed America to compete by challenging the nation to put a man on the moon. President Bush needs to challenge America to build a more fuel efficient car. This isn't rocket science - it is auto mechanics -- and it could save Americans millions of barrels of oil every year and thousands of lives in unnecessary conflicts based on the global struggle for oil. Our continued reliance on foreign oil is a threat to our national security. More fuel efficient cars could make a real difference - we use 20 million barrels of oil a day and two-thirds of that is consumed in the transportation sector."

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http://markey.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1489&Itemid=125