Linc Energy Blog

National Security Picks and a war on 3 fronts…

We know about the threats to US National Security interests represented by the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.  President Elect Barack Obama has just named Hilary Clinton as Secretary of State, Robert Gates to continue as Secretary of Defense, and retired US Marine General James Jones as National Security adviser.  Something old, something new, something borrowed…it’s a great start to a new life for the Country…on the National Security Front at least.

But there is a larger threat to our National interests than the Taliban or the unrest in Iraq- the struggle for United States energy independence.  And thus far we have only engaged in a few skirmishes and a war of words.  The big battles lie ahead for our nation, for our economic recovery, and for the hearts and minds of the world.  

Yes, the world.   We must achieve energy independence  as a top priority to our National Security.  Energy Co-dependence leads to resentment.  It’s dysfunctional.   Just as any co-dependent relationship is.   We don’t have a functioning trade relationship with any of our major suppliers of oil.  Our oil imports contribute significantly to our massive trade deficit- the burden of which is now approaching 6% of our entire GDP.   This is not sustainable.  Every dollar we spend off-shore is a dollar less we can spend here.  The good news is that the deficit is shrinking.  The bad news is that the global recession will change that enormously.  The only drops in the deficit over the term of the Bush administration have been due to a weakened US dollar- making our products cheaper to purchase by foreigners.   The dollar weakened because the world saw us as a weakened economy (before the all out collapse of recent.)  Our continued importation of foreign oil will continue to drain the US economy.  We must put a stop to it soon.  

One of the most important appointments Obama can make in the next few months will be his National Energy Adviser.  And this person should be a part of his National Security Team.  The biggest threat to our security is not the Taliban.  It’s our continued importation of oil from people who do not have our best interests at heart.  New options exist. 

Options like wind, Solar, Hydro, Nuclear, geo-thermal, Clean-Coal, bio-fuels, ultra-clean diesel.  These are the allies that we must now embrace.  Let’s hope that Obama recognizes the importance of these options to our National Security.