Obama Unveils "Clean" Vehicle Initiative

Mount Holly, North Carolina - Mixing politics with policy, President Barack Obama returned to North Carolina on Wednesday to step up his wooing of this key election-year swing state and to propose new federal incentives to spur "clean energy" vehicles.

In a spirited speech at the Daimler Trucks manufacturing plant - a rare union shop in right-to-work North Carolina - Obama announced a $1 billion challenge to communities that, he said, could eventually reduce America's dependence on foreign oil and consumers' exposure to sticker-shock prices at the gas pump.

Those willing to shift to more energy-efficient vehicles, the president said, would be rewarded with bigger tax breaks of up to $10,000 as well as other federal assistance.

"To cities and towns all across the country, what we're going to say is: If you make a commitment to buy more advanced vehicles for your community - whether they run on electricity or biofuels or natural gas - we'll help you cut through the red tape and build fueling stations nearby," he told a crowd that included 450 of the Daimler plant's 1,450 employees.

More