California Gov. Gray Davis, a Democrat fighting for his political life, has accused Bush of not doing enough to help ease the state s electricity crunch. Republicans in California have warned the White House of potential fallout, prompting Bush to dispatch Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham to the state last week. Bush himself is trying to fit a California trip into his schedule. In Washington, Republican lawmakers are warning the White House their constituents want solutions now and might take their anger out on the GOP-controlled Congress in 2002. Abraham faced tough questions Tuesday from Republican and Democratic lawmakers alike about Bush s plans to cut energy research by about 30 percent, with some programs involving solar and wind energy slashed in half.
Republicans are afraid of the political cost of high energy prices.
We ve got the rolling blackouts and the gas prices dominating the national news. We don t want to be the ostrich party and stick our head in the sand. Eager to avoid blame, the White House has pointed fingers everywhere even at the first Bush administration for the lack of a national energy policy. Trying to lower expectations, Vice President Dick Cheney said creating energy policy is difficult work. They ducked it for eight years.