Barack Obama is gearing up to take over the White House, and he comes with a giant checkbook. That’s the message of today, in which Obama gave a major speech at George Mason University laying out his plans to help revive the American economy – or so he hopes.

Scientists are already thrilled that his economic recovery plan includes plenty of money for them: notably a call to double renewable energy production within three years, while bringing three-quarters of federal buildings up to higher energy-efficiency standards. Unspecified ‘investments in science, research and technology’ also play a role.

Obama claims that his plan will ‘save or create’ 3 million jobs. That remains to be seen, and as 4.6 million Americans are receiving unemployment benefits, it’s not about to help everyone in need. But that hasn’t stopped research advocates – like everyone else around Washington – from trying to get as much out of the plan as they possible can. The chairwoman of the MIT earth, atmospheric and planetary sciences department, Maria Zuber, was even on Capitol Hill this week to make the case for R&D investment.

Stay tuned to Nature over the next weeks for full coverage of science and technology in the Obama administration.