If the American auto industry is going to make a comeback, they're not going to do it by trying to compete head-to-head with Toyota and Honda on their own turf. They need to do a flanking maneuver on Toyota and Honda and beat them to the punch on reliable, long-range, inexpensive electric-powered cars.

The #1 technological priority in the US should be developing a battery that would make electric cars a truly viable alternative to conventional ones. The technology to make the cars is already in place but it's not really going to go anywhere until someone comes up with a battery that will provide a reasonable number of miles between charges, at a reasonable cost, and without weighing a ton. If the government really wants to do something for the auto industry it should put together a modern-day "Manhatan Project" whose goal is to create that battery.