by Rebecca Walker — February 4, 2011—Declaring that current challenges present this generation’s “Sputnik moment,” President Obama called for high-profile energy goals, including a target of producing 80 percent of U.S. electricity from clean energy sources by 2035, during his 2011 State of the Union address on January 25.
To break the nation’s oil dependency, the President said the United States should aim to be the first country to have one million electric vehicles on the road by 2015 and to provide 80 percent of Americans access to high-speed rail within 25 years.
To meet his goal of 80 percent clean energy by 2035, the President urged an inclusive approach. “Some folks want wind and solar. Others want nuclear, clean coal, and natural gas. To meet this goal, we will need them all,” he said.
To attain this vision, the President’s proposed budget will focus on “high-value” research into clean energy deployment, and it will include more than a doubling of investments in energy efficiency and a more than 85 percent increase in renewable energy investment.
The White House said such expenditures will include support for the “$1 a Watt” initiative to make solar energy cost competitive; an increase in funding for 24-hour geothermal renewable energy; and more emphasis on industrial efficiency to keep U.S. manufacturing competitive.
For more information, see the transcript of the State of the Union as well as a fact sheet on it.
