(OVERLAND PARK, KS) – Congressman Dennis Moore (Third District – Kansas) announced today that he signed T. Boone Pickens’ Energy Independence Pledge, calling for the next administration and the 111th Congress to enact, within the first 100 days of the new administration, a bipartisan energy plan that “reduces our foreign oil dependence by at least 30% within ten years.”

“As a nation, solving this energy crisis will require determination, perseverance, bipartisanship and leadership,” Moore said. “I applaud Mr. Pickens for his effort to raise public awareness about the need for a responsible, comprehensive plan to reverse our nation’s foreign oil addiction. The only way to accomplish this task is for Republicans and Democrats to set aside partisan and ideological differences, and work for the good of all Americans. I stand ready to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, as I always have, to implement this bipartisan approach.”

Legendary oil magnate T. Boone Pickens has proposed a plan to begin to end our reliance on foreign oil. With his own resources, he is leading a bipartisan effort to give all Americans a voice in demanding a national energy policy that will curb the need to import nearly 70% of the oil we use each day.

“Congressman Moore is showing real leadership on a critical issue,” Pickens said. “I salute him for joining me in urging the next administration in Washington – whoever it is – to make reducing our depending on foreign oil an absolute priority.”

Pickens unveiled his plan on July 8, 2008, and can be found online at www.PickensPlan.com. The proposal seeks to end the United States’ growing dependence on foreign oil, which costs the country $700 billion per year. The plan calls for investing in power generation from domestic renewable resources such as wind and using our abundant supplies of natural gas as a transportation fuel, replacing more than one-third of our imported oil and saving more than $230 billion a year.

The Pickens Pledge reads:

"We will no longer stand by and watch as America’s national security and economy become more dependent on the unstable foreign nations that we rely on for nearly 70% of the oil we use each day.

"We spend nearly $700 billion every year buying foreign oil, which represents the greatest transfer of wealth in the history of mankind.

"The new President and the 111th Congress need to enact an energy plan that reduces our foreign oil dependence by at least 30% within ten years.

"This plan must include proven American technology and resources; the development of new energy sources; and the expansion and modernization of the national electrical grid to transport renewable energy to homes and businesses.

"Delaying any further means tacit support for continuing America’s addiction to foreign oil.

"I join with T. Boone Pickens and his army of supporters in calling for an Energy Independence Plan to be enacted within the first 100 days of the new administration."