[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 102 (Thursday, June 19, 2008)]
[House]
[Pages H5709-H5710]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           THE NEW MANHATTAN PROJECT FOR ENERGY INDEPENDENCE

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Forbes) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. FORBES. Mr. Speaker, in 1961 President John F. Kennedy laid out a 
bold challenge, to put a man on the moon in less than 10 years. At the 
time, people called it unreasonable and absurd to put a man where no 
human had stepped before, using technology that hadn't even been 
developed yet, and to do it in less than 10 years seemed impossible.
  But what we saw come out of that decade was a Nation that continued 
to defy the odds and achieve the seemingly impossible. When Neil 
Armstrong opened the door of Apollo 11 and set foot on the surface of 
the moon, he embodied the very essence of America, combining our hopes, 
our dreams and our determination. Americans rose to the challenge and 
changed the course of history.
  Today we face a new challenge. The national average for a gallon of 
gasoline is now $4.07. Gas prices have risen nearly 75 percent since 
the Democratic majority took control just a year and a half ago. And 
this isn't a coincidence.
  The majority's policy since taking power has been to restrict 
domestic energy production and increase taxes and regulations on U.S. 
energy suppliers. Simple economics tells us that limiting the supply of 
oil will increase costs. At a time when families in my district and 
across the country are struggling every day to cope with skyrocketing 
prices and a slowing economy, this is outrageous and irresponsible.
  We continue to get the bulk of our energy fossil fuels, and 60 
percent of that comes from foreign nations that, in many cases, do not 
share our interests. This is not just an economic problem. It's a 
national security crisis that demands both short and long-term 
solutions. We must increase our oil supply in the short-term, but we 
must also launch a national effort to harness American innovation if we 
hope to succeed in the long-term.
  Like the first Manhattan Project that was established to insure the 
security of our Nation during World War II, today our national security 
depends on our ability to produce reliable sources of energy to fuel 
our economy and our national defense, independent from other nations.
  That's why I've introduced a bold new initiative that will put us on 
the path to energy independence. The New Manhattan Project for Energy 
Independence, H.R. 6260, challenges the United States to achieve 50 
percent energy independence in 10 years, and 100 percent energy 
independence in 20 years tape, and establishes a commission to lay out 
a plan to get there. A lot of people had talked about it, but it was 
time to put forth a bill and do something about it. That's what H.R. 
6260 does.
  Additionally, the bill sets out seven major goals that will put our 
Nation on this path. The New Manhattan Project will bring together the 
best and brightest minds in our Nation and encourage American 
innovation by awarding major cash prizes to anyone who successfully 
reaches one of these goals.
  Specifically, Americans will be challenged to develop ways to double 
CAFE standards to 70 miles per hour, while making these vehicles 
affordable to consumers; improve home and energy efficiency by 50 
percent on a wide scale, develop a solar power plant that costs no more 
than a coal-consuming power plant; make the production and use of 
biofuels cost-competitive with standard gasoline fuel; safely and 
cheaply store carbon emissions from coal-powered plants; safely store 
neutralized nuclear waste; and lastly, to produce sustainable 
electricity from a nuclear fusion reaction.
  The processes to reach these goals are neither simple nor cheap, and 
many Americans may think them impossible. To make it possible for the 
inventor, researcher or company that achieves any of these goals, my 
proposal would provide significant cash prizes to the first person who 
reaches each of these goals. And to assist those who have promising 
ideas in these areas to help our country achieve energy independence, 
$10 billion will be set aside for grants to fund promising lines of 
research. In total, this bill would supply the same level of resources 
on the same scale as the original Manhattan Project, which is a total 
of $24 billion.
  It is, in fact, possible that even after the major investments 
proposed in this bill, we may not be 100 percent energy

[[Page H5710]]

independent. But even if one of these goals is achieved, the impact 
would literally transform the energy sector. And if every one of these 
ambitious goals is reached, our country would be free from our 
addiction to foreign oil, and we will have guaranteed our economic and 
national security tape for future generations.

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