(Huffington Post) WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama clearly laid out his energy agenda in Tuesday night’s State of the Union address, promising “responsible development” of domestic oil and natural gas even as he pledged to invest in renewable energy. “We don’t have to choose between our environment and our economy,” he said.
Though he made no mention of Solyndra, the bankrupt solar company that benefited from a government loan program, or Keystone XL, the controversial oil pipeline he rejected to much celebration and criticism last week, the president showed political backbone in refusing to back down from his commitment to investing in developing renewables.
Obama vowed to incentivize manufacturers to make energy upgrades, as well as to green the carbon footprint of the nation’s military. He announced that the Department of Defense will make one of the largest commitments to clean energy in history, with the Navy purchasing enough capacity to power a quarter of a million homes per year.
“I’m directing my administration to allow the development of clean energy on enough public land to power three million homes,” said Obama. It’s an area where the government has significant money to spend.
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