‘Switch and drill’ energy policy from Landham camp

Termed the "Switch and drill" platform, Libertarian Senate candidate and former actor Sonny Landham released an energy plan today centering on decreasing demand for oil from member states of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries [OPEC] by allowing more domestic drilling and encouraging the use of hydrogen as a fuel.

"The market for oil is not a free market," reads Landham's platform. "It is dominated by an economic cartel - OPEC...The very purpose of an economic cartel is to control prices."

Landham's platform - penned jointly with one-time 4th Congressional District Republican candidate Roger Thoney - argues expanding domestic drilling while pushing alternatives to oil will force the hand of OPEC states.

"This would greatly decrease the demand for oil from OPEC countries, forcing them to lower their prices or increasing production, in order to do the same," read a statement from Landham's campaign.

One alternative fuel central to Landham's plan is hydrogen - a solution for which he cites a past co-star as an inspiration.

"Hydrogen is the fuel of the future, and it is time to make it a reality now. I am proud to stand with my far-sighted friend and fellow politician, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, in promoting the rapid development and introduction of vehicles fueled by hydrogen," said Landham in a statement released with the plan.

(View Landham's plan here - right click, save as)

Actor and current Governor Schwarzenegger (R-Calif.) and Landham jointly appeared in the 1987 action film Predator.

During his tenure as governor, Schwarzenegger has pushed for the creation of a hydrogen-fuelling infrastructure in California.

Landham's plan similarly would require gas and diesel fuel stations to be capable of providing hydrogen fuel within two years. To help small businesses transition, Landham would offer low-cost loans.

The plan would also require all vehicles sold in the United States to be capable of operating on "100% alcohol fuel."

Landham would also provide tax-incentives to alternative fuel researchers and owners of retro-fitted alcohol-powered vehicles.

The principle villain in rising gas prices is OPEC, according to discussion in Landham's platform. He and co-author Thoney reject the notions that market speculation, supply and demand patterns, or American oil company greed are major contributors to recent per-barrel price hikes.

"U.S. oil companies are beneficiaries of the price manipulation, but are not the cause," reads the platform.

"It is not a competitive market, but one dominated by an economic cartel that controls prices," it continues.

Landham jumped into the U.S. Senate race last week. If he and his supporters can collect 5,000 signatures across the state, he will join incumbent U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell (R-Louisville) and businessman Bruce Lunsford (D-Louisville) on November's general election ballots.

Still, Landham has a fight ahead of him in a race he says he is in to win.

His past includes a jail term - for a conviction that was later overturned - and several appearances in pornographic films.

In addition, he and platform co-author Roger Thoney have appeared in videos released by the Council of Conservative Citizens - a group described as a "hate group" by the Southern Poverty Law Center and the Anti-Defamation League, though the CCC disputes these claims.