Texas Oilman Meets With McCain, Obama About Alternative Energy Plan

August 18, 2008 11:50 a.m. EST

Reno, NV (AHN) - Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) ended a week-long vacation in Hawaii and met with T. Boone Pickens on Sunday, two days after Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) spoke with the Texas oil billionaire.

Pickens met with both candidates about his energy plan, called the PickensPlan, which seeks to end U.S. energy independence on oil by developing technology and infrastructure for alternative energies such as natural gas, wind and solar power. The plan aims to substitute at least 20 percent of the nation's electricity with energy produced by wind within 10 years.

Pickens, ranked as one of the world's richest men, has launched a multi-million advertising campaign to push his alternative energy proposal. He currently has a TV ad in which he says, "We cannot drill our way out of this problem."

Obama's meeting with Pickens was held despite the oilman's $3 million contribution in 2004 to Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, an organization which was responsible for severely damaging the presidential campaign of then-Democratic nominee Sen. John Kerry (D-MA).

When asked about Pickens' previous support for the controversial group, Obama chose to emphasize bipartisan efforts to agree on an energy plan. "He's got a lot longer track record than that. He's been doing, ah, he's a legendary entrepreneur and you know one of the things that I think we have to unify the country around is having an intelligent energy policy," the Democrat is quoted by the Los Angeles Times as saying.

Pickens reiterated in a written statement his plan requires bipartisan support.

"As I did with Senator McCain on Friday, I stressed the urgency of the situation and the need to end the largest transfer of wealth in human history. I told him that any credible domestic energy policy must reduce our dependence on foreign oil by at least 30 percent in the next 10 years, in addition to conservation measures and that must utilize proven and available technologies and be 100 percent comprised of American resources," he said, according to MarketWatch.

Pickens had issued a similar statement after meeting with McCain last week. He also said the Arizona senator was "interested" in his energy proposal and "recognized" that public support was key to a successful energy policy.

McCain has proposed increasing domestic oil production by expanding drilling in the Outer Continental Shelf, building more nuclear power plants and funding the development of hybrid cars. Obama wants to invest in renewable energy sources; he recently signaled his support for a compromise plan with Republican senators that push for limited offshore drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.