McCain Proposes $300 Million Prize for Alternative Auto Battery

If John McCain has his way, coming up with a new sustainable energy solution will be one big game show. McCain has proposed a $300 million prize to anyone who can develop an automobile battery that best surpasses existing technology.

From CNN:

McCain said the new automobile battery should have “the size, capacity, cost and power to leapfrog the commercially available plug-in hybrids or electric cars.”

“In the quest for alternatives to oil, our government has thrown around enough money subsidizing special interests and excusing failure,” McCain said. “From now on, we will encourage heroic efforts in engineering, and we will reward the greatest success.”

Obama’s response, per the Detroit News:

“When John F. Kennedy decided that we were going to put a man on the moon, he didn’t put a bounty out for some rocket scientist to win — he put the full resources of the United States government behind the project and called on the ingenuity and innovation of the American people,” the Illinois senator said in a speech in Las Vegas. “That’s the kind of effort we need to achieve energy independence in this country, and nothing less will do.”

McCain’s battery proposal is no doubt an attempt to get back in the favor of some moderate environmentalists who disagree with his views on offshore drilling. If he were really serious about improving battery technology, he’d pledge to invest money in research grants and other incentives. Even with the possibility of $300 million at the end of the road, individuals and small companies would be unlikely to afford the research that would be necessary to create such a battery – more likely, the prize would end up in the hands of some huge corporation. Hardly a way to encourage American innovation. McCain might as well just ready himself for the reaming he’s gonna take in November.

Link [CNN] + [Detroit News]
Photo credit: Flickr user aflcio2008

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