Americas News
President Obama: U.S. Needs "Modern Ports"
U.S. President Barack Obama on Tuesday gave his State of the Union address, saying he wants to rebuild America's ports, and speed up permits for oil and gas drilling.
Upgrades to the country's ports were among the things that businesses need most, he said, and pledged to attract private capital through a Partnership to Rebuild America initiative to make the improvements, "to make sure taxpayers don't shoulder the whole burden."
The country needs "modern ports to move our goods," he said.
Oil And Gas
On energy, Obama said the the U.S. is buying less foreign oil than it has in twenty years, and is producing more domestic oil than it has in 15 years.
He also encouraged Americans to use more "clean energy," and noted that the natural gas boom has led to cleaner power and greater energy independence for the country.
"That's why my Administration will keep cutting red tape and speeding up new oil and gas permits," he said.
One industry observer used their twitter feed to describe the comment as "disappointing."
Some of the revenue obtained from energy resources on public land could be used to create an "Energy Security Trust" to support research into alternative fuels, Obama proposed, but did not expand on details for the scheme.
The president also pressed Congress to pass a cap-and-trade bill on greenhouse gas emissions.
Making reference to previously proposed bills that failed to pass, which sought to cap carbon emissions but allow open-market trading of emissions allowances, he threatened the use of executive powers if Congress continued in its failure to take action.
"I urge this Congress to pursue a bipartisan, market-based solution to climate change, like the one John McCain and Joe Lieberman worked on together a few years ago. But if Congress won't act soon to protect future generations, I will.
"I will direct my Cabinet to come up with executive actions we can take, now and in the future, to reduce pollution, prepare our communities for the consequences of climate change, and speed the transition to more sustainable sources of energy," he said.
