print-only banner
The White House Skip Main Navigation
  
 Home > News & Policies > Policies in Focus

Promoting Innovation and Competitiveness
America’s 21st Century Economy
President Bush and Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham, right, tour an exhibit of hybrid electric-fuel cars and trucks at the Department of Energy in Washington, D.C., June 28, 2001.
President Bush and Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham, right, tour an exhibit of hybrid electric-fuel cars and trucks at the Department of Energy in Washington, D.C., June 28, 2001.
 
President Bush addresses the American College of Cardiology Annual Convention at the Orange County Convention Center in Orange County, Calif., March 21, 2001. President Bush believes that innovations in electronic medical records and the secure exchange of medical information will help transform health care in America - improving health care quality, reducing health care costs, preventing medical errors, improving administrative efficiencies, reducing paperwork, and increasing access to affordable health care. President Bush and Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham, right, tour an exhibit of hybrid electric-fuel cars and trucks at the Department of Energy in Washington, D.C., June 28, 2001.
President Bush visits the Georgia Institute of Technology O’Keefe Building to view an emergency response training exercise March 27, 2002. President Bush has set an ambitious goal of assuring that most Americans have electronic health records within the next 10 years. It would allow access to secure, complete records in an instant, whether from the emergency room or the family doctor’s office. While visiting Argonne National Laboratory in Argonne, Ill., President Bush reviews Homeland Security Technology by lab director Dr. Herman Grunder July 22, 2002. Sponsored by the Dept. of Energy and operated by the University of Chicago, the laboratory is combating terrorism through innovative projects such as detectors for neutrons, biological and chemical agents and developing an emergency response system that coordinates various technologies.
During a demonstration of energy-efficient technologies, President Bush tries out a cell phone powered by hydrogen fuel cell technology at The National Building Museum in Washington, D.C., Feb. 6, 2003. On April 26, 2004, the President announced that the Department of Energy has selected partners through a competitive process to fund new hydrogen research projects totaling $350 million ($575 million with private cost share) to overcome obstacles to a hydrogen economy President Bush signs the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act in the Oval Office Dec. 3, 2003. Nanotechnology offers the promise of breakthroughs that will revolutionize the way we detect and treat disease, monitor and protect the environment, produce and store energy, and build complex structures as small as an electronic circuit or as large as an airplane.
President Bush talks with an employee at U.S.A. Industries in Bay Shore, N.Y., March 11, 2004. “You hear people talking about -- worrying about outsourcing and jobs moving overseas, and one reason why is because they don't have the skills necessary to take the jobs of the 21st century,” said the President in his remarks. “We have an obligation in society to help train the people for the jobs which exist. And so job training has got to focus in smart, practical ways.” President Bush participates in a Conversation on Job Training at Marshall University in Huntington, W. Va., April 2, 2004. “Listen, technology is changing, and it races through our economy, but work skills don't change as quickly. And that's the challenge we face. We've got to make sure we get people trained,” said the President in his remarks.

backnext