Americans for Prosperity, a limited-government advocacy group, is airing a radio ad praising U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole's record on energy.

What it says: The ad begins with sounds of traffic. Two narrators, male and female, discuss high gas prices: "You've seen the bad news. We're pushing $4 a gallon and these skyrocketing prices are hammering North Carolina families. It's time for bold action, yet Congress hasn't lifted a finger." Light guitar music then plays. "But North Carolina is lucky. We have a senator who's leading the fight to lower energy prices, Elizabeth Dole. Senator Dole has a real plan to lower gas prices. It's called the Gas Price Reduction Act. The United States is home to a vast supply of oil, estimated at over 2 trillion barrels. The Dole plan lifts the ban on offshore exploration and oil shale development and continues to promote conservation. Senator Dole understands increasing production here at home means jobs for hard-working North Carolinians. Senator Dole has shown real leadership on the energy issue at a time when North Carolina families need it most. Call Senator Elizabeth Dole today at 919-856-4630 and tell her thanks for all she's doing to lower gas prices. Paid for by Americans for Prosperity, which is responsible for the content of this advertising and not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee. On the Web at AmericansforProsperity.com."

The background: In late June, a group of Republican senators introduced a bill called the Gas Price Reduction Act.

The legislation, which mirrors several aspects of Republican presidential candidate John McCain's energy plan, would lift a Congressional ban on offshore drilling, promote oil shale drilling in three Western states, strengthen regulation of oil futures trading and make loans and grants to battery makers.

In a statement announcing her cosponsorship of the bill, Dole stressed that it would leave the decision on offshore drilling up to the state.

In a 2005 report, the RAND Corporation, a nonprofit think tank, estimated that a giant untapped oil shale deposit in Colorado, Utah and Wyoming could hold between 1.5 and 1.8 trillion barrels of oil, of which roughly 800 billion barrels could be recovered.

Neither offshore drilling or oil shale would increase the oil supply for a number of years, although supporters say that by expanding the potential supply they could affect current market prices, which are based in part on future supply.

The Energy Information Administration said in a report last year that offshore drilling would not increase the oil supply until 2017, while the RAND report projected that technical problems would prevent oil shale from producing a significant amount of oil for at least 20 years.

Offshore drilling in North Carolina could lead to jobs on oil rigs, building and maintaining pipelines and shipping, although it's not clear yet whether the oil would be processed here or elsewhere. Oil shale drilling would not directly lead to new jobs in this state.

The bill includes hundreds of millions of dollars in loans and grants to promote the development of new batteries for hybrid and plug-in vehicles.

It also directs a percentage of the federal revenue be used for land and water conservation and mitigation of affected wildlife areas.

Is it accurate? The ad is generally accurate, but it makes two claims that are misleading. The United States may have as much as 2 trillion barrels of oil, but not all of it is usable. The bill could lead to better hybrid cars, but it does not exactly promote energy conservation. Most listeners would not think the ad was referring to land and water conservation.

Does the Gas Price Reduction Act promote conservation?

In a radio ad airing this week, the small-government group Americans for Prosperity praises U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole for cosponsoring a bill to lift a ban on offshore oil exploration. It says the bill "continues to promote conservation."

The bill would allow offshore drilling, oil shale drilling in three Western states, better regulation of oil futures trading and loans for battery makers. 

Americans for Prosperity spokesman Dallas Woodhouse noted that the bill calls for a percentage of the revenue from offshore drilling to go to the Land and Water Conservation Fund.

The fund was created by Congress in 1965 to use money from offshore oil and gas leases to buy land for state open space projects and to expand national parks and forests.

The bill also calls for states permitting offshore drilling to receive a percentage of the federal revenue to spend on projects mitigating damage to marine and wildlife areas. 

In the context of the ad, "conservation" could also be taken to mean energy conservation.

To that end, Woodhouse noted that the ad directs the U.S. Department of Energy to spend $100 million and make $250 million in loans to promote battery research for plug-in and hybrid vehicles.

What is Mike Easley campaigning for?

For the second time, a North Carolina political observer has noticed the term-limited governor shift rhetorical gears into High Campaign Mode.

Announcing a new hybrid car battery initiative at the Emerging Issues Forum today, Easley's feisty style raised the "national ambitions" question anew, Charlotte Observer editor Jack Betts writes on his blog:

For a politician who professes no interest in running for higher public office, Gov. Mike Easley sure sounded like a candidate with a message and a healthy dose of ambition to move on up in the political world Tuesday.

Earlier this month, WUNC reporter Laura Leslie noticed the same shift to a "more animated, more rhythmic" preacherly style at an educational meeting.

"It's hard to explain here, but if you're in the room when he shifts into campaign style, it's as palpable as a transmission shifting gears," she wrote.

Easley can't run for governor and he has ruled out a Senate run. But the hybrid battery and education are two issues he certainly hopes to be remembered for.

Is it possible to campaign for a legacy?

Gov. Mike Easley called today for energy independence.

At a speech at the Emerging Issues Forum, he said that OPEC and other oil-producing countries have the United States "by the tail."

"I'm tired of being wagged, and I think it's time we did something about it," he said.

He said tax credits for alternative energy and increased efficiency already in place are helping. But he also painted a picture of a future with plug-in hybrid cars powered by home electricity and grids across the state run by Duke Power and Progress Energy.

"It sounds like the Jetsons to you doesn't it?" he said. "Well, Israel is going to do this by 2011."

He said that battery-powered automobiles, such as one he recently test drove, would create American jobs and reduce spending sent to foreign countries that are sometimes hostile.

Easley then announced that the state would start an advanced transportation energy center at N.C. State University in partnership with Progress and Duke to build lighter, cheaper and more efficient batteries. He said General Motors may also join in the center.

He said that the power companies are also working to start the electric grid to power the cars.

"By the time the battery is ready, the grid will be in place," he said.