By Tribune-Review

Published: Tuesday, March 19, 2013, 9:00 p.m.
Updated: Thursday, March 21, 2013

Attempting once again to pick “winners,” President Obama's latest green initiative — $2 billion to fund research into electric cars and biofuels — is destined to be a loser.

So few presidents can chalk up so many policy failures premised on nothing more than their own failed policies.

The innovator in chief proposes using federal oil- and gas-lease revenue to underwrite $200 million a year in research. Weaning America off gasoline is “the only way to break this cycle of spiking gas prices,” Mr. Obama says.

We suppose domestic development of what's right under his feet is out of the question. Which brings into question where the government is going to come up with the scratch to pay for this research, given an administration that's absurdly slow to permit and drill.

And never mind Team Obama's previous adventures in crony capitalism, for which the future hasn't been “green.” It's been black.

Based on figures compiled by The Heritage Foundation, about $80 billion of the 2009 “stimulus” went to mostly politically preferred energy projects. By the end of last year, about 30 recipients of the government's green were in trouble. Waste, fraud and abuse have led to 1,900 criminal investigations — and about 600 convictions.

Sucking more capital out of the economy won't advance research or technology. It will only expand the intolerable list of government-funded energy fiascoes.

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