The liberal media tried to bury this story as quick as Energy Sec. Chu suggested unleaded prices would solve our energy problems forcing people to buy alternative energy cars and sub compacts.  Well that dog don’t hunt, this is America, not Europe.  I think Obama ran for office in the wrong country because beyond food, wine, tourism and other Euro products the majority of us don’t envision Euro anything.  Especially $7 gas.  When unleaded hit $3 a gallon many people began to cut back on spending because they spent a fortune just to commute to work and travel daily.

Interviews with Chu help to explain why the Gulf is in slow motion while oil rigs corrode waiting on the multi-tasker in chief to grant permissions again.  Democrats want to punish American success with a forced move towards cars that aren’t deemed reliable as of yet.  While to early adopters and the wannabee seen types will buy electric cars now, they’ll soon find the costs are higher than just the cost of electricity.  Steven Chu thinks we can make this shift in 5 years while most Americans will wait and see.  Economies of Scale will reduce manufacturing costs as more people buy alternative energy cars but the fact remains, till such cars can travel 300 miles or more on a single charge and or companies produce larger vehicles, the majority will sit on the sidelines.  And of course the majority can’t afford to switch cars every year so expect 2 decades till we see a major decline in gas powered cars…………before then we’ll need more power plants but nuclear is out all thanks to enviro-fascism coming from the left.  Solar and wind will take time to develop and Chu wants us to pay more now.   Looks more like a get rich scheme wrapped around a specious plan to reward their own success with our money.   R&D takes time, throwing more money around won’t speed up inovation, especially when the money comes from the people via Obama policy.  And I thought Obama said “no new taxes” too?  Yes he did!

http://blog.heritage.org/2011/01/07/gas-prices-under-president-obama-in-pictures/

Fact: President Barack Obama’s Energy Secretary Steven Chu wants to “figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe.” At the time he made the statement, gas cost $7 – $8 a gallon in Europe.
Fact: Since taking office, President Obama’s entire energy agenda has made a gallon of gas more expensive:

• Immediately after taking office in 2009, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, canceled 77 leases for oil and gas drilling in Utah.
• The EPA announced new rules mandating the use of 36 billion gallons worth of renewable fuels (like ethanol) by 2020.

All of these policies raise gas prices at the pump by either: 1) decreasing the availability of domestic energy supplies, or 2) increasing regulatory costs on gasoline production.

http://blogs.abcnews.com/thenote/2008/12/obama-energy-pi.html

“Somehow we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe,” Steven Chu, the director of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, told the Wall Street Journal in September.

Chu said he favors gradually ramping up gasoline taxes over 15 years to nudge consumers into buying cars that are more fuel efficient and homes which are closer to work. Chu spoke with The Wall Street Journal in September but the newspaper did not publish the gas tax comments until last seek, shortly after the Nobel-prize winning physicist had been identified as Obama’s nominee for Energy secretary.

The president-elect acknowledges that gas prices have come down since the summer when they reached $4 per gallon. He worries, however, that the overall economic downturn makes American families ill-equipped to shoulder higher prices.

“I can imagine in the hearings Chu facing problems because he dares say, ‘higher prices,’” said Schipper. “But I think there is no solution that does not involve higher prices.”

Schipper, who shared a lab at Berkeley with Chu from 1972-74, estimates that the average cost of gasoline in Europe at present is somewhere between $7-9 per gallon.

Schipper thinks Obama’s concerns about not placing additional burdens on America’s families can be addressed by agreeing to rebate all — or close to all — of the money raised by higher fuel taxes.

“The answer is: raise the price of gasoline and give all the money back,” said Schipper.