In the January 29, 2007 edition of Time Magazine, Montana Democrat Governor Brian Schweitzer was asked how Democrats could make energy an  issue in the upcoming presidential campaign.  Here’s what Schweitzer said:

I can do it in a 60-second spot,” he said.  “Put me on the clock.”  And he was off to the races: “folks, we’ve got a problem.  We Americans use a 6.5 billion bbl.of oil a year.  We produce 2.5 billion ourselves.  We import 4 billion from the world’s worst dictators.  We need to stop doing that.  We can save one billion bbl. through conservation.  Things like more efficient cars, homes and appliances.  We can produce another one billion bbl. of biofuels with agricultural crops like corn, soybeans and canola.  We can produce 2 billion bbl. a year turning our enormous coal reserves to clean-burning gas.  We can achieve energy independence in 10 years, create a whole new industry with tens of thousands of high-paying jobs, and you’ll never have to send your grandchildren to war in the Middle East.  I’m Brian Schweitzer, and I approved this message.

Schweitzer proclaims that Montana is going to save the world in that it is “the Saudi Arabia of coal.”  He argues that coal can be turned into a clean-burning liquid fuel, and that this fuel (plus biofuels and conservation) “can completely eliminate the need for imported oil.”

Time doesn’t overlook Schweitzer’s credentials: “Schweitzer has a Masters in soil science from Montana State University and spent seven years building irrigation projects in Saudi Arabia.  He speaks fluent Arabic and has a sophisticated grasp of middle eastern politics and the history of oil.”