Photo by SEIU International. Licensed under Creative Commons license 2.0.

Man, all this presidential candidate pandering is getting out of control. When John McCain first talked about saving the average family $30 on gas taxes over the summer by instituting a "gas tax holiday," it was easily pegged as a pretty dumb idea that wouldn't do much to help with the average family's budget or with America's addiction to oil. Still, calling for lower taxes is a time-honored pander in American politics, and McCain was soon followed by Hillary Clinton in singing the praises of the tax holiday idea. Her plan includes charging the oil companies $8b to pay for the tax holiday, which McCain's doesn't.

Clinton spent the weekend defending her support, and did so in a bizarre way. During an Indiana town-hall meeting, she did not give ABC host George Stephanopoulos an answer to his question about which economists support the tax holiday. Instead, she tried to argue that the lack of expert/economist support for the idea just means that "elite opinion" is against the working class on this issue.

Clinton and her Democratic rival, Barack Obama, continue to fight over the issue today, with Obama rightly calling the holiday idea a "gimmick" (although, as AutoblogGreen readers have pointed out, he did support a state gas tax holiday back when he was in the Illinois Legislature). In a CBS News/New York Times poll that was released yesterday, voters came out against the holiday: 49 percent said it was a bad idea, 45 said it was good.

[Source: Talking Points Memo, LA Times, Washington Post]

Recently Senator Edwards, a leading Democratic presidential candidate, said he would increase CAFE to 40 MPG by 2016. The current standard is 27.5, so I thought it was a bold move. Then I read Obama's plan. He plans to increase CAFE 4 percent a year. His website says it's "a rate that the National Academy of Sciences has determined is possible without changes in vehicle weight, safety or performance." There is a caveat of "unless the experts at NHTSA justify a deviation in that rate by proving that the increase is technologically unachievable, cannot maintain overall fleet safety, or is not cost-effective."

Assuming it's compound interest, he's elected and re-elected, CAFE should be 37.64 in 2016. This is actually a few MPG's less than Edwards. However, Edward's plan does not have any requirement before 2016. Obama's plan could have a real impact on the way car companies design. The pressure of a yearly deadline for increasing CAFE would put improvements on the road sooner. Even if the improvements are small, they are still improvements that could otherwise be delayed in Edward's plan.

Hillary Clinton's energy plan is not out just yet. Obama and Edwards both support ethanol and flex fuels in different ways. So, I expect her plan to support fuel alternatives as well. There is very little cost involved in making a car flex fuel. Add the scale of every car being flex fuel, possible government subsidies and you get major benefits with no real cost at all. The energy bill has a CAFE plan of 35 MPG by 2020, so expect Clinton to say something above 35 MPG as well. The video above shows Obama at the opening of an ethanol plant.

Related:

• Obama becomes the anti-Levin, criticizes Detroit automakers for poor fuel efficiency
• Barack Obama says take the California low carbon fuel standard nationwide
• Three Senators unveil pro-plug-in hybrid FREEDOM Act

[Source: Grist]

Not satisfied with a photo op with the President Bush in front of the White House, Phoenix Motorcars has lined up a test drive with the Clintons for today, August 17. There are no guarantees but we will probably see him beside the car. I don't know why but I can't wait for that photo op. Bill has had experience with other green cars. He likes big green cars :D

He drives a special edition Presidential Mariner hybrid. Hilliary has also seen some green cars like the 100 MPG Prius and drives the Ford Escape hybrid. She is not alone. Other presidential candidates John Edwards, Chris Dodd, Mitt Romney and Bill Richardson also drive the Ford Escape hybrid. The video is Olbermann on the Bush blew himself incident which has the Phoenix SUV just off camera. It was all a joke, a bad joke.

[Source: CNET]

"We have always found a way to clean the environment and grow the economy at the same time. And when it comes to global warming, we'll do it again." Former President Bill Clinton takes his own words, spoken in the 1998 State of the Union Address, to heart as he gives up his Secret Service issued SUV for a Mariner Hybrid.

The Detroit News reports that Mr. Clinton got a sneak peek at the customized hybrid on Wednesday, but the formal delivery will appropriately occur at a conference on climate change later this month.

USA Today notes that the car's extra features include extra legroom in the rear, a swing-up desk, a refrigerator and some electronic devices to which Ford is sworn to secrecy.

I suppose at some point in the future when Mr. Clinton upgrades to a ZEV, the Mariner will proudly retire along side his '67 'stang in Arkansas' Museum of Automobiles.

Related:

• Top ten green machines
• 2006 Mercury Mariner Hybrid: In the Autobloggreen garage, Day 1-2

[Source: Detroit News]