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(DENVER) In town for the Democratic convention to promote his “Pickens Plan” for alternative energy, billionaire oilman T. Boone Pickens predicted $200 a barrel oil within three years.

“In two or three years, we’re going to be at $200 a barrel—could be $300 a barrel for oil,” Pickens said inside the “Big Tent,” a complex outside the Pepsi Center set up for bloggers. “And consequently, our economy is going to struggle and our security is just—it’s a disaster.”

Pickens was joined on stage by Sierra Club president Carl Pope and Center for American Progress president John Podesta, both of whom endorsed The Pickens Plan, although each called for additional proposals.

Pickens said the United States is blessed with “two corridors” that are conducive to alternative energy sources: the “wind corridor” from Texas to Canada and the “solar corridor” from Texas to California. Although Pickens said he agreed with Al Gore that global warming is a major problem, his first priority is to help reverse the tide of sending billions of dollars overseas for America’s energy needs.

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About a week ago, as Ben Smith reports, the Obama campaign started airing a new ad centered on energy. Only they didn't tell the press. So while this spot looks like the second in the Obama camp's series of energy spots criticizing John McCain – after an ad unveiled yesterday saying McCain is in the "pocket" of big oil – it's really the first. Got that?

"John McCain. He’s been in Washington for 26 years," an announcer says in the newly-unearthed spot, "National Priority." "And as gas prices soared and dependence on oil exploded, McCain was voting against alternative energy, against higher mileage standards."

The spot then shifts to a focus on Obama. Says the announcer:

"Barack Obama. He’ll make energy independence an urgent national priority, raise mileage standards, fast-track technology for alternative fuels. A thousand dollar tax cut to help families as we break the grip of foreign oil. A real plan, and new energy."

The Obama campaign tells CBS News that the spot is airing in "battleground states." Watch it below:

The Obama campaign released a new TV ad that tries to tie John McCain's energy plan to George Bush's policies.

The ad, called "New Energy," accuses McCain of being "part of the problem" of high gas prices and shows archived footage of the Arizona senator embracing President Bush. The narrator says Obama "will make energy independence an urgent priority."

The Obama campaign said that the contrast ad was a response to "false, negative ads" launched by the Republican National Committee.

"New Energy" will run in the battleground states of Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

Watch the ad below.

This weekend, the independent expenditure arm of the Republican National Committee will unveil an ad or ads focused on energy security that will run as part of a roughly $3 million advertising buy centered on battleground states.

The exact nature of the spot(s) is not yet known, but yesterday GOP media consultant Brad Todd, who is running the RNC's independent expenditure unit, released this statement, which suggests the blitz will contrast the two major candidates on energy policy:

"Following Barack Obama's decision to become the only major party presidential candidate in history to not adhere to campaign spending caps, the Republican National Committee has begun an independent expenditure campaign in accordance with FEC regulations. The RNC will first advertise this weekend in Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, highlighting the issue of energy security, which is emerging as a defining difference in the race for president."

The Obama campaign, anticipating that the ads will be highly critical of their candidate, released this statement in response:

"It has been reported that the Republican National Committee will begin running television ads in a number of battleground states this weekend. As John McCain's own advisors have noted, the RNC and the McCain campaign operate as one unit. And since these ads will likely be attack ads that contradict McCain's pledge to run a respectful campaign, he can, and should, immediately reverse his plan to air them. In fact, a few months ago, McCain urged GOP state party committees to run a respectful campaign, stating, 'I have pledged to conduct a respectful campaign. And I have urged, time after time, various entities within the Republican Party to also do that.' Clearly, the RNC should adhere to the same standard."

Since the ad is coming from the RNC's indipendent expenditure unit, the RNC can plausably distance itself from the content of the spot – even though the RNC is paying for it. Todd's group, for legal reasons, cannot coordinate with the RNC or McCain's campaign.

UPDATE: And here it is:

On a conference call organized by the McCain campaign this morning, Arizona Republican Sen. Jon Kyl and McCain senior policy advisor Doug Holtz-Eakin took aim at Barack Obama over energy policy.

Kyl told reporters that back in the Senate they are referring to Obama with the phrase “No We Can’t,” as opposed to “Yes We Can.” McCain spokesman Brian Rogers yesterday called Obama the “Dr. No” of energy security for opposing a gas tax holiday, offshore drilling, and expanded investment in nuclear power.

The reference, for the record, is to the James Bond film from 1962 starring Sean Connery. (Dr. No was the bad guy.) Obama yesterday called those policy suggestions, which McCain backs, "not serious."

On the conference call this morning, CBS News' Allison O'Keefe reports, Kyl said that McCain takes a more balanced approach than his rival. “He recognizes that we need more production,” Kyl said, but that there also need to be “environmental check and balances.”

By contrast, Kyl said, Obama doesn't offer solutions, opting instead to just say no to every proposal. “No we can’t drill off shore; not a proponent of nuclear so we can’t do that either,” he said.

Asked about Obama’s charge that some of McCain's proposals amount to a gimmick, Holtz-Eakin suggested that Obama might want to take time out to read a text book, arguing that futures markets depend on optimism and confidence.

UPDATE: This afternoon, the McCain camp unveiled a web-only ad with a "Dr. No" theme. "Barack Obama Truly Is The Dr. No Of Energy Security," the spot concludes. Check it out:

John McCain's campaign has released a stark new minute-long, web-only ad called "Energy Security" in which the candidate lays out his "plans to move America forward toward energy independence," in the words of a campaign release.

The spot opens with the words "A reliance on oil" appearing onscreen as ominous music plays in the background. Next come the words "A threat to our climate, "a threat to our economy," and "a threat to national security."

Cut to McCain speaking: "Much of the world's oil supply is controlled by states, regimes and a cartel for which America's well being is not exactly a priority." As McCain says this a map of Iran is shown, followed by a picture of a smiling Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

"We must shift our entire energy economy toward new and cleaner power sources such as wind, solar, biofuels," McCain continues. "It will include a variety of new automotive and fuel technologies, clean-burning coal and nuclear energy."

McCain then suggests he will have a demonstratively different energy policy than that of President George W. Bush, a fellow Republican.

"The next president must be willing to break with the energy policies not just of the current Administration, but the administrations that preceded it, and lead a great national campaign to achieve energy security for America," McCain says.

The Obama campaign, meanwhile, has released a memo blasting McCain's support for offshore oil drilling.

"The question is whether we are going to offer the American people real answers and genuine relief or the same, tired Washington gimmicks and special interest favors that have failed our families and country for too long," writes the Obama campaign. "With his proposal to lift the moratorium on offshore drilling that, as even the McCain campaign admits, wouldn’t produce any increase in resources for years and his gas tax gimmick that economists agree wouldn’t significantly reduce the price of gas if at all, John McCain has chosen to offer more of the same instead of change."

Watch the McCain ad below.

The following is a campaign dispatch from CBS News' Fernando Suarez:

Hillary Clinton made her way to New Hampshire today, where she called on all Americans to help advance the energy plan that she began laying out on Monday in Iowa.

She was joined onstage in Nashua by former "This Old House" host Bob Vila, who has endorsed her campaign and is an advocate for making people's homes more energy-efficient. "When we take back the White House there's going to be a lot of fixing to do," Clinton joked.

Halfway into the speech, Clinton began to cough. Her voice failing her, the former first lady started whispering. "I sound like Tallulah Bankhead," Clinton noted, to laughter from the crowd. Bankhead, as cinephiles know, was an actress in the 1930's. She was known to drink and smoke in excess and had a very husky voice.

Clinton's voice, however, was due to fatigue: She's been campaigning for a week straight and her vocal cords began failing her during her last swing through Iowa.

Clinton continued coughing as someone in the crowd yelled "hang in there!" The former first lady replied, to applause, "One thing you know about me, I hang in there." She cut her speech short and let Vila take over, then got some tea and was able to continue.