U.S. hawks urge energy independence

WASHINGTON, May 5 (UPI) -- National security experts are increasingly cooperating with environmentalists to push U.S. energy independence from Mideast oil.

Numerous national-security "energy hawks," military brass and industry officials, as well as prominent Democrats and environmentalists, recently published a plan to cut energy dependence under the name Energy Future Coalition.

"We believe that the United States' dependence on imported petroleum poses a risk to our homeland security and economic well-being," wrote EFC in a letter to President Bush in March signed by more than 30 military and security officials, including Robert McFarlane, former national security adviser to President Reagan.

"Even if prices got no higher, or even came down some, sending tens of billions of dollars overseas to people determined to destroy us is crazy, no matter the price of oil," says Frank Gaffney Jr., president of the Center for Security Policy, a national security think tank, and a former Reagan administration leader.