White House: Innovate! Educate! Win!

By Charles Riley, staff reporter


NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- The White House rolled out its plan to stimulate the economy and increase American competitiveness Friday, detailing in a new report how it hopes to spur innovation.

The slogan-heavy report is a continuation of a theme championed by President Obama in his State of the Union address, in which he outlined his plan to "win the future."

In that speech, Obama called for revamping education policy and adding 100,000 more math, science, technology and engineering teachers by the end of the decade; extending wireless Internet coverage to 98% of the population; having 80% of the nation's electricity coming from clean energy sources by 2035; and 1 million electric vehicles on the road by 2015.

The full report, titled "A Strategy for American Innovation: Securing Our Economic Growth and Prosperity," is an update to a similar report from September 2009. But this version lays out the administration's priorities in detail.

Gene Sperling, director of the National Economic Council, said the report represents Obama's "comprehensive innovation strategy" and is "a critical part of his economic vision to win the future."

Among the administration's top priorities is increasing efficiency within the patent office, which currently suffers from an enormous backlog.

If implemented, the administration said the plan will reduce the average delay in patent processing from 35 months to 20 months, and to less than 12 months for priority applications.

The report also elaborates on Obama's plans for increasing investments in key areas, such as education and clean energy.

Earlier this week, the White House launched its "Startup America" initiative, which is designed to spur the growth of small businesses and startups.

And on Thursday, Obama proposed a "Better Buildings Initiative." That program is designed to improve energy efficiency in commercial buildings.

Of course, all these initiatives will need funding, something Sperling said the president is committed to including in his fiscal 2012 budget, which will be released in 10 days.

"These are the priorities that we are still making room for because it's part of [Obama's] vision for growth and competitiveness for our country going forward," Sperling said. To top of page

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