Online Extra: Q&A with Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham

Newly minted Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham has a slew of challenges before him. With California's rolling blackouts threatening to spread eastward, OPEC nations cutting production, and gasoline prices set to jump this summer, the former Michigan senator faces the daunting task of garnering support in a sharply divided Congress for a new, yet-to-be-released energy policy. A Harvard Law School graduate who served as Deputy Chief of Staff to former Vice-President Dan Quayle, Abraham is helping to shape energy policy by sitting on a Cabinet-level task force headed by Vice-President Dick Cheney. Abraham, who once famously sponsored legislation to abolish the Energy Dept. he now heads, took some time out on Mar. 23 to speak with BusinessWeek correspondent Laura Cohn about the challenges he faces in his new job. The following are edited excerpts of their conversation:

Q: Could you clarify your view on energy tax breaks? You said the other day the Administration doesn't favor manipulation of the tax code to favor certain industries, but in the Bush budget blueprint there are some incentives for renewable energy sources.

A:

What I said was we would reject both of the extremes in the debate: the one extreme, that we can somehow conserve our way to energy security, and the other extreme, that we could somehow tax-incentivize or government-subsidize our way to energy security. That doesn't mean we won't have conservation measures in our plan. It doesn't mean we won't have some form of government support in our plan. I'm confident that when the President reveals his plan, it will be a much more balanced plan, with a much greater focus on allowing market forces to be the principal backer in moving us in the direction of energy security.