Mike Huckabee on Environment

As President, Huckabee says his first act will be to send Congress his comprehensive plan for energy independence and vows to achieve energy independence by the end of his second term. He sees energy independence helping to guarantee our safety and our prosperity.

To achieve independence, Huckabee believes we have to explore for new sources, conserve, and pursue all avenues of alternative energy: nuclear, wind, solar, hydrogen, clean coal, biodiesel, and biomass.

He has supported increased reliance of alternative fuel technology, the use of state funds to clean up former industrial and commercial sites that are contaminated, unused, or abandoned. He also was to opposed state environmental regulations being stricter than federal law.

Directly from the candidate:

The first thing I will do as President is send Congress my comprehensive plan for energy independence. I’ll use the bully pulpit to inform you about the plan and ask for your support. I’ll use the bully conference table to meet with members of Congress until I have the votes. The plan will get underway during my first term, and we will achieve energy independence by the end of my second term. The Huckabee Administration will be remembered as the time when we finally, finally achieved energy independence.

We have to explore, we have to conserve, and we have to pursue all avenues of alternative energy: nuclear, wind, solar, hydrogen, clean coal, biodiesel, and biomass. Some will come from our farms and some will come from our laboratories. Dwindling supplies and increasing demand from newly-industrialized countries of fossil fuels are driving up prices. These price increases will facilitate innovation and the opportunity for independence. We will remove red tape that slows innovation. We will set aside a federal research and development budget that will be matched by the private sector to seek the best new products in alternative fuels. Our free market will sort out what makes the most sense economically and will reward consumer preferences.