Democratic Senate candidate Mike Padgett responds to Sen. Alexanders "Manhattan Project" with an "Energy 2.0" proposal. At least it has a more up-to-date new age moniker. Read the press release after the jump...

WE MUST WAGE AGGRESSIVE, LONG-TERM FIGHT ON ENERGY PRICES

Alternative fuels, renewable power will create jobs, new economic opportunity

MEMPHIS – U.S. Senate candidate Mike Padgett unveiled "Energy 2.0," a far-reaching, pro-active plan, Friday for the nation to take back its energy independence.

"As I visit the counties and cities across Tennessee, the pain being inflicted on families at the gas pump is obvious," Padgett said during a three-day campaign stop in Memphis, “and we’ve inflicted critical damage to the fragile atmosphere that surrounds our planet.

"I am not promising Tennesseans a silver-bullet cure to problems that is complex and long in the making. Quick fixes like the so-called gas tax holiday can only make things worse.

"But I am committed to an aggressive, innovative effort to ease the pressure that energy costs are putting on the checkbook of working-class families."

Among Padgett’s proposals:

• End the tax breaks enjoyed by Big Oil and apply the revenue to a trust fund that will help innovators develop alternatives to foreign oil and more gas-efficient vehicles.

• Lift the embargo that prevents American companies from competing for Cuban oil.

• Expand “cap-and-trade” payments required of polluters and aggressively fund solar and wind energy production – which also will create good-paying jobs and economic opportunities for struggling farmers.

• Consider nuclear power – as long as it is safe and waste storage is adequate – and coal – as long as it is clean – as part of the energy equation.

• Attack the federal budget deficit as a means of restoring a healthy dollar – a big culprit in the current high gas prices.

"We must do better, we can do better, and I will see that we will," Padgett said. "This is the nation that produced Henry Ford and Bill Gates, and we can win this fight.

"If Tennessee voters stand with me, I’ll make sure they have a fighting chance against crippling energy costs. We won’t leave our children and grandchildren dependent on foreign oil for their economic survival."