In the State of the Union address, President Bush spoke about investing in technology that produces coal-fueled energy, while capturing (sequestering) the CO2 emissions of the coal-fired power plant. the project this refers to is FutureGen - a joint venture between the US and China, which is slated to be built in Mattoon, Illinois.
However, only a day later, Department of Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman made statements in a closed-door meeting with Illinois state and federal lawmakers that he was considering pulling the funding for the project. He cited soaring construction costs and new technology, but was not specific on either. He was also quoated as stating he inherited FutureGen and did not believe in it.
If these statements are true, I am curious to know if he shared these beliefs with the President prior to the SOU. It seems like the worse kind of blindside - assuming the president himself believes in a manifestation of a policy he has been supporting since 2003.
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