McCain Calls For Nuclear Power Expansion

Ariz. Senator Wants More Reactors Built, Increased Funding For Clean Coal

(AP)  Sen. John McCain called Wednesday for the construction of 45 new nuclear reactors by 2030 and pledged $2 billion a year in federal funds "to make clean coal a reality," measures designed to reduce dependence on foreign oil.

In a second straight day of campaigning devoted to the energy issue, the Republican presidential nominee-in-waiting also said the only time Democratic rival Barack Obama voted for a tax cut it was a "break for the oil companies."

McCain said the 104 nuclear reactors currently operating around the country produce about 20 percent of the nation's annual electricity needs.

"Every year, these reactors alone spare the atmosphere from the equivalent of nearly all auto emissions in America. Yet for all these benefits, we have not broken ground on a single nuclear plant in over thirty years," he said. "And our manufacturing base to even construct these plants is almost gone."

Even so, he said he would set the country on a course to build 45 new ones by 2030, with a longer-term goal of adding another 55 in the future.

"We will need to recover all the knowledge and skills that have been lost over three stagnant decades in a highly technical field," he conceded.

McCain did not say what steps, if any, he would propose to simplify the permitting process for nuclear plants. Nor did he say how he would dispose of the waste, other than to say "we will need to solve complex problems of moving and storing materials that will always need safeguarding."

Shortly after he spoke, a participant in a campaign-organized round-table discussion of energy, retired Marine Corps Gen. James Jones, said obtaining the necessary construction permits can take five years. "We should be able to cut that in half," added Jones, a former NATO commander who is now chief executive officer of the U.S. Chamber Institute for 21st Century Energy. He also is on the board of Chevron.

Jones flew to Missouri aboard the campaign's chartered jet although, ironically, Democrats recently disclosed that his name has figured in Obama campaign discussions of potential Democratic vice presidential running mates.

McCain's motorcade drove by a few dozen sign-carrying demonstrators protesting the Iraq War. One audience member interrupted his remarks by standing and shouting that the Arizona senator had taken millions from the oil industry.

A dramatic spike in worldwide oil prices has pushed the cost of gasoline to $4 a gallon and more, and made energy a domestic political issue in a way it has not been since the days of the Arab oil embargo of the 1970s.

On Tuesday, McCain delivered a speech in Texas in which he made the case for a nationwide effort to reduce dependence on foreign oil, including additional drilling in U.S. coastal waters, and said he would begin laying out specific proposals in the coming days.

With his appearance in Missouri, he began making good on that promise.

The Republican presidential contender said Missouri gets about 85 percent of its electricity from coal, an abundant natural resource in the U.S.

"Perhaps no advancement in energy technology could mean more to America than the clean burning of coal and the capture and storage of carbon emissions," he said.

With the $2 billion in federal funds, he said, "We will build the demonstration plants, refine the techniques and equipment, and make clean coal a reality. This single achievement will open vast amounts of our oldest and most abundant resource. And it will deliver not only electricity but jobs to some of the areas hardest hit by our economic troubles."

It was the second straight day McCain has criticized Obama, the Illinois senator who will collect the Democratic presidential nomination this summer, a few days before McCain lays claim to the GOP nomination.

Obama has said McCain's support for additional offshore oil drilling is evidence that he would effectively give the country another term of the Bush presidency.

"I guess the senator has changed his position since voting for the 2005 Bush energy bill - a grab-bag of corporate handouts that I opposed," McCain said. "Come to think of it, that energy bill was the only time we've ever seen Senator Obama vote in favor of any tax break - and it was a tax break for the oil companies."

McCain opposed the 2005 measure and said at the time it was larded with billions in unnecessary tax breaks for the oil industry.

[noloyalisti]

Another brilliant idea from the war-mongering McBush. His lack of understanding of the simplest concepts is unbelievable. Maybe in that sense he is a good representative of the followers who have their story and are sticking to it. His reasoning is so infantile and ignorant, it is scary to think this guy could even be considered for pResident. Bush on steroids but senile. Wow!!!!!!

[omaar-101]

OK You Mccain Lovers, Volunteer to have Nuclear Power Plants in or around your Neighborhoods, or live with the knowledge, that your neighborhood will be a Nuclear War target, if World War 3 occurs !!!


Not to mention your Offspring being born with 2 Heads and Your Families being Plagued with Brain Cancer or Various forms of Cancer !!

By all means.....Vote McCain

[k72360]

Ah, heck, McCain''s a man''s man. He eats spent nuclear fuel rods for breakfast. I''m sure he''s willing to put a nuclear reactor right on his own ranch property (or is it Cindy''s ranch?). Cancer doesn''t bother him. He''s already had one tumor. What''s to worry about another two, three or four tumors in order to help out his energy pals? Hey, he can always put those spent fuel rods in those empty holes he digs in the ocean looking for oil. He''s such an environmentalist. He''s so green that he''s turning brown.

[gkc99]

More nukes--more plutonium.

Be the first kid on your block to have some!

[starleo146]

One moment he is for the next he is against. Against drilling offshore, now he is for it, and they called Kerry a flip flopper. Get a grip Mc Bush you are for whom ever is listening at the time, and tomorrow another audience you are against. You also say you and Bush are far apart, guess what he came out for a release of the ofshore ban. YOU ARE ALIKE MCBUSH

[broadwayphi]

Wait, I thought he just wanted to bomb bomb bomb, bomb bomb Iran?

Now we, too, shall have that "Healthy McCain Glow"?

Thanks.

My friend.

[questionnews]

Europe gets 30% of thier electricity from nuclear power plants. We have to stop the Europeans from imposing thier energy policies upon the USA. Down with non-air polluting energy sources!!!!

[smurfcrusher]

I wonder if McBush pronounces nuclear "nukeyaler" like the idiot president.

"I plan to harness the awesome power of the nukeyalus!! Take that, oil sheiks!"

[formrusmcsgt]

McCain''s call for alifting of the ban on offshore drilling is only a ploy for the ignorant.

Even if the ban were to be lifted, it''d be 5 or 6 years before any market impact would be felt.

McCain counts on the ignorance of those who don''t understand the exploraion and drilling processes who''ll say "John wants to open up offshore drilling to get us out of tis mess".

Plus, he and Bush wish to protray the Dems as unsympathetic to the current price crunch should they not vote to lift the ban, even though it would have no impact on prices for several years.

The current crisis can be laid at Phill Gramm''s feet who got a third of the market derugulated by a Repub Congress at the behest of Ken Lay from Enron.

BTW, a big contributor to Bush and a member of the Cheney Energy Task force....

If Bush and McCain weren''t doing a political dance and really wanted to lower prices, they would be calling for a draw-down from the strategic reserve.

That would really affect prices in the short term.

Why aren''t they calling for that? Because that would be real money out of the pockets of their benefactors.

So we get this dog and pony show instead.....

[labrat9999]

Would someone please tell the old man of the sea (McBush) that there IS a small problem with Nuclear facilities..I think it was called Three Mile Island and Chernobyl "On 26 April 1986 at 01:23:44 a.m. (UTC+3) reactor number four at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant located in the Soviet Union near Pripyat in Ukraine exploded. Further explosion and the resulting fire sent a plume of highly radioactive fallout into the atmosphere and over an extensive geographical area. Nearly thirty to forty times more fallout was released than had been by the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki." So where would you suggest we put this puppy? I know how about Texas or Arizona? This is just more of the same garbage brought to you by people with little or no memory remaining!

[ubrew12]

dmw1167 said: "No one living today will see renewable energy of any quanity,"
I support the limited expansion of nuclear (with careful attention to waste, etc). Nevertheless, that is just so much doo-doo! Just because they haven''t built anything doesn''t mean it cannot be built. The last time this country used its tax resources on alternative energy (back in the 30s), we built just about every dam in America, and still generate 20% of our power that way. To take one example, there''s enough power in ocean waves off 100 miles of California''s coastline to power the entire state (no other sources needed). Again, just because we''re blind to alternatives, doesn''t mean they don''t exist, it just means we''re blind.

[homespunlady]

From above:
"And our manufacturing base to even construct these plants is almost gone."

Even so, he said he would set the country on a course to build 45 new ones by 2030, with a longer-term goal of adding another 55 in the future.

"We will need to recover all the knowledge and skills that have been lost over three stagnant decades in a highly technical field," he conceded."


Hmm.. did the people building and dealing with the plants DIE OFF?

Wonder why when it''s ONLY been about 30 years?

Heck if you were 20 working on building it that would only make you 50 - over 20 years YOUNGER THAN McCain.

Of course sounds like some of my former coworkers might get a job - but then again I''m NOT SO SURE they''re STILL ALIVE either.

Al least my kid wasn''t born with 2 heads - just a few "little" other problems that leave me worrying about LONG term effects.

Either way, those conveniently NOT noticed civilian and Mennonite cancer clusters around a few certain "sites" aren''t anything to worry about..right?

[homespunlady]

ubrew

McCain conveniently "FORGOT" about HYDRO-POWER - must be a SENIOR MOMENT...

Hoover Dam is AWESOME and one of the ways this nation RECOVERED from the LAST "GREAT DEPRESSION".

As Far as Missouri where he was speaking - the dams in Missouri - Bagnall Dam at Lake of the Ozarks and Truman Dam as examples come to mind - sure are STILL WORKING - AND PROVIDING PLENTY OF "RENEWABLE ENERGY" POWER for that area NEAR SPRINGFIELD!

[homespunlady]

Of course the way the Yellowstone Basin is BEEFING up - we MIGHT just have TOO MUCH "energy" - all at once sometime in the NEAR future....

[hsinco-2009]

I like the McCain ads. They all try to hide the goiter on tyhe left side of his face. The ad with his goitered face halfway in shadow is one.

[hsinco-2009]

When we can have a fusion nuke plant instead of fission nukes, then I might be in favor of it. But in places that there is a lot of sun, solar should be used to the fullest extent possible, incuding and especially for homes and cars. But the energy companies own the Repugs and they (the energy companies) will not stand for lots of people generating their own power. The corps want the monthly dig into our wallets and solar would cut off that access.

[ixoye_02]

If McCain want nuclear power, then let Congress designate Arizona as the state that will house the nuclear waste. I know that Yucca mountain in Nevada exists to store nuclear waste. But there are too many safety concerns such as earthquake fault lines that run under the site and also how to make sure that the drums of waste do not leak among the other engineering challenges and dollars wasted (I know because I worked for Bechtel, who was a contractor on this project). McCain might have been around long enough to vote to approve the Yucca mountain disaster. And it''s not fair to the Nevadans who don''t want Yucca mountain. So, let''s build it deep underneath the vast Arizona desert instead.

[omaar-101]

OK You Mccain Lovers, Volunteer to have Nuclear Power Plants in or around your Neighborhoods, or live with the knowledge, that your neighborhood will be a Nuclear War target, if World War 3 occurs !!!


Not to mention your Offspring being born with 2 Heads and Your Families being Plagued with Brain Cancer or Various forms of Cancer !!

By all means.....Vote McCain

[squidly8]

labrat9999

Your references to Chernobyl show your ignorance on the nuclear power industry in the West. Chernobyl was a graphite moderated reactor. Graphite can ignite and cause a fire. That is the very reason that US reactors do not use this design. Reactors in the US are water moderated (pressurized or boiling water types) and cannot catch on fire. There are no graphite moderated reactors in the US therefore it cannot happen here.

To those that are concerned about radiation effects, when was the last time you had an X-ray, flew in a plane, went out in the sun, went in your basement, had treatment with nuclear medicine? Do you give any one of those activities a second thought? 99.99% of you just nod your head and say "yes, doctor". You probably think they are safe because it is for a good reason - it has to be "good" radiation. Radiation exposure is radiation exposure regardless of the source. A neutron, beta, alpha or a gamma particle does not care about its source being more ''friendly'' than another.

[squidly8]

Just the usual whining and fear mongering about an industry that has an excellent safety record even taking 3 mile island into account. It was estimated that IF any single person received any exposure due to TMI, it was no more than 1 millirem. The occupational exposure limits set by the Fed in simple terms is 5 rem/year. 5000 times what someone near TMI MIGHT have received. I spent 5 years in the nuclear Navy, received 480 millirem of exposure in all that time. I have zero health issues. Maybe you should ask your doctor what your exposure from that next chest xray will be before he exposes you?

[ubrew12]

squidly8 said: "Just the usual whining and fear mongering "

Find a solution to the waste problem, and it''d be easier to get on the band-wagon. I don''t have a problem with expanding nuclear, but once again Republicans are (by refusing to discuss it) tanking alternative energy sources. To give but one example: Britian spent $1 trillion researching nuclear power in the 1960s, yet all the while wave power had the ability to MATCH nuclear''s power capabilities or EXCEED IT. And guess how much money wave power research got?? Until you right-wingers stop destroying alternative techologies by refusing to fund research, I''ll oppose nuclear, at least in principle. You guys are so transparent, and you don''t have the best interests of the American people in mind. It''s all about your ego''s.

[kansas1946]

LOL. And John McCain accused Obmama of recycling old ideas. Hellooooo. Earth to John. This is a really OLD idea and a really dangerous idea. Think of something else, quick.

[ofbyfor1]

Oh, so we only have to wait 22 years for the full benefit. In the meantime, I guess we can figure out where to store the nuclear waste. Whose backyard will THAT be in?

Why don''t the Republicans get a clue and stop stonewalling the Research and Development credits (and other incentives) for alternative energy resources. I''m sure we could make much better use of our $ over the next 22 years with that kind of investment. Plus, we couldbeat other countries to the punch, becoming the leader in alternative energy AND quite possibly replace our dying manufacturing sector. Ooops, sorry, that would take REAL foresight.

[fairandbal]

LOL. And John McCain accused Obmama of recycling old ideas. Hellooooo. Earth to John. This is a really OLD idea and a really dangerous idea. Think of something else, quick.

Posted by kansas1946 at 11:05 PM : Jun 18, 2008

John McSame at it again.

[smirk5]

I think we could provide a year''s worth of power for America is we would just burn whatever McCain is storing in those jowls of his.

[hamiltongrad]

Horray ! It is a great bold idea. Thank you ! France has had Nuclear for so long, as has the State of Conn.
It is so old style 70s to think negative about the only way we can save our earth.

[o_nolan1]

Who is going to guard all of these new nuclear facilities? You will need an army of new people to do it. It is a disaster waiting to happen. Solar and wind technology will fit the energy needs of the future. The right are counting on the fact that this issue has remained dormant for the last thirty years and no one will protest it. Think again.

[smirk5]

Yep. We need more nuclear power. The people that gave us good gov''t regulation and action under Bush (Katrina, Enron, the Mortage situation, etc.) can provide the quality nuclear regulation we need to run safe nuclear power plants. We can put Brownie in charge. He''ll do a heckofa job.

[smirk5]

The same guys that gave you the Afghanistan and Iraqi quagmires want to be in charge of regulating many new nuclear power plants. Sure they hire people who provide dirty water to our soldiers and who build showers that electrocute them as well, but we can trust them. Sure they lose tens of billions of dollars in Iraq, but we can trust these gov''t cronies to effectively act as watchdogs for the nuclear power industry. I guess if you believe that, you might think oil will pay for the Iraq war and that we were greeted as liberators. I wouldn''t mind new nuclear plants if the French Gov''t was in charge of regulating them. I can''t trust our gov''t if Republicans are in charge. Republicans will send our troops in Iraq without the proper body armor. They surely will cut corners when it comes to regulating the nuclear industry. Cutting corners is what Republicans do.

[fairandbal]

McSame''s pushing for Nuclear power sounds EXACTLY like Bush''s push for war in Iraq. All this promise of a ''clean non-polluting energy'' and ZERO plans for what to do with the harmful radioactive waste.

Sounds a lot like ''they''ll be throwing flowers at our feet when we enter Bagdad!''.

[fairandbal]

McFosil has come up with a brilliant plan. repeat calls for an outdated energy policy and make it sound like our hope for the future.

we need NEW alternative fuels that will NOT harm the environment. Unless you''re willing to store nuclear waste in YOUR back yard in Arizona!

[smirk5]

We''ll be greeted as liberators.
Oil will pay for the war.
Saddam is in league with Al-Qaeda.
The insurgency is in it''s last throes.
We''ve broken the back of the insurgency.
Nuclear power is safe and we''ll be able to store the waste effectively.
Bush and McBush simply can''t be trusted.
If you think you can trust McBush, ask yourself if you can think of 5 major issues he hasn''t flip-flopped on in the last 8 years.

[jsilver2th]

if you thought oil was expensive

[rickstas]

McCain called Wednesday for the construction of 45 new nuclear reactors by 2030, but not one in Iran in 2008!

[smirk5]

Protection of nuclear power plants under McCain will probably be similar to protection of New Orleans by FEMA under Bush. Has McCain found someone in the Arabian Horse industry to take charge of the nuclear regulatory agency? McCain is definitely a crony-loving type of guy. I''m sure he has a lobbyist lined up for the job.

[smirk5]

The same gov''t and buddies of the gov''t (McCain) that are currently telling us that nuclear power will be safe, are the same people who said Iraq would be quick and easy. Even if it can be done, they''ll surely mess it up if they''re in charge of it. Remember, the same guy who confidently says nuclear power is safe, is the same guy who doesn''t know how to use a computer.

[watcher269-2009]

Wow - McBush is flip flopping so much he''s made John Kerry look like an amateur.

[jedi080808]

Wow - McBush is flip flopping so much he''''s made John Kerry look like an amateur.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by watcher269

The same gov''''t and buddies of the gov''''t (McCain) that are currently telling us that nuclear power will be safe, are the same people who said Iraq would be quick and easy. Even if it can be done, they''''ll surely mess it up if they''''re in charge of it. Remember, the same guy who confidently says nuclear power is safe, is the same guy who doesn''''t know how to use a computer.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by Smirk5
I''m voting Obama but McCain is flipping now because of Oil prices which is a legit reason to flip.

Also any scientist will tell you that Nuclear power plants are completly safe

[jedi080808]

We need to drill and we need to have more plants and we need alternative energy too.

Sometimes everyone can be right about something. I think this is one of those times.

[smirk5]

jedi080808,
How many live in Chernobyl? The problem with nuclear energy is that it is run by humans. Humans can''t be trusted to not screw up on occasion. Nuclear power is a really bad thing to screw up on. Our country can''t even get it''s voting system to work effectively. It can''t respond well to things like Katrina. It can''t create a gov''t that can balance a budget, and it can''t plan for wars with any competence. We will screw up somewhere big time if we go big on nuclear power.

[jedi080808]

jedi080808,
How many live in Chernobyl? The problem with nuclear energy is that it is run by humans. Humans can''''t be trusted to not screw up on occasion. Nuclear power is a really bad thing to screw up on. Our country can''''t even get it''''s voting system to work effectively. It can''''t respond well to things like Katrina. It can''''t create a gov''''t that can balance a budget, and it can''''t plan for wars with any competence. We will screw up somewhere big time if we go big on nuclear power.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by Smirk5

I''m just saying that stat wise, its really safe.
You say McCain is a flip Flopper which he is, but I don''t think this issue should count. If you flip a posiston because of a change in the world, like 4 dollar a gallon prices, that isn''t what I call a flip Flop. Bush gets hounded for always staying the course and not adapting his posistion to the situation, so you can''t have it both ways.

Its one thing if you flip and flop for votes (like Hillary) its another if you do it because the circumstances in our counrty have changed

[feelfree4u]

Re: "McCain Calls For Nuclear Power Expansion"

Sounds like he is ripping off President Ahmadinejad''s platform.

No wonder McCain is scared to talk to him.

[tulcak]

nuclear? drilling for more oil? coal? NO! NO! NO! We have the technology now, today, to switch to alternative GREEN sources of energy.
nuke, oil, and coal are dirty and dangerous. HEY, WAKE UP ! ! ! GLOBAL WARMING. Its going to kill us all because people are still refusing to admit it is real. What do you think the midwest flooding is caused from. Ah, the he*l* with it. We are all going to die because of morons like bush and mcSame. GREAT job GOP.

[mcvet]

A monkey can run this country better than Obama. Obama kicked Islamic women out of his rally this day so the TV cameras would not associate HIM with Islam. I guess Obama doesn''''t really represent ALL of us after all.

Posted by howzilla at 01:30 AM : Jun 19, 2008
+ rep

ROFLMAO Now you see, this is what happens when you FAIL in school and become a Neo Nazi! This post is pure fascism top to bottom but the last part is the funny part. Here is someone who would have, in a heart beat, have been on here trashing Obama as having Ties to Muslim Extremist IF those ladies had shown up in the picture. So two low level Champaign Workers removed them and??? This fascist losers is on here trashing him for the actions of these lower level workers. I''m not EVEN going to get into the trash about Clinton''s years in the White House except to say, how many of you wouldn''t trade the Clinton Administration for George W. Bush!! ROFLMAO McSame is a flip flopper that puts everything we''ve ever seen before him to shame. NO ONE, and I do mean NO ONE, knows where this guy actually stands on anything... he will say or do ANYTHING to get elected. We already KNOW were that leads now don''t we!! SIEG HEIL BUSH!!

[gkc99]

Yet he wants to bomb Iran for doing just what he recommends!

Flip-flop McCain!

Ya can''t have it both ways, Johnny boy!

[eggy1620]

Until the green movement recognizes that nuclear energy is a green alternative, and the only realistic alternative to combustible fuels, we will be stuck on this carousel until the American way of life ceases to exist. But that is an end that the greens seem to welcome.

[dante805]

McCain needs to say this to Obama during a debate: Drilling for more oil is part of the solution, along with increase fuel standards, increased Nuclear power plants, and increased wind and solar generation facilities. Senator Obama is wrong to say no to more drilling. Voting against more drilling is cutting off our nose to spite our face...and Senator Obama is the surgeon...and I thought he was a lawyer. The McCain camp is free to use that or hire me for more zingers.

[watcher269-2009]

I''m hearing through the grapevine that Cheney has actually monitored personally a torture interrogation at Guantanamo in Cuba - even thought these interrogations are illegal - that means cheney just performed an illegal act - because he did not report or try and stop it.

I also hear the Rumsfeld also witnessed personally interrogations at Guantanamo, Abu Greub, and in Afghanistan and a number of other countries.

If these reports are true - they need to be arrested.

[omaar-101]

Total Imports of Petroleum (Top 15 Countries)

(Thousand Barrels per Day)

CANADA 1,952 1,795 1,902 1,909 1,846

SAUDI ARABIA 1,453 1,535 1,519 1,458 1,358

MEXICO 1,259 1,232 1,230 1,460 1,471

NIGERIA 1,115 1,154 1,105 891 1,089

VENEZUELA 1,019 858 990 1,182 1,070

IRAQ 679 773 693 562 488

ANGOLA 579 384 469 514 556

ALGERIA 393 247 300 530 495

BRAZIL 201 188 182 175 174

KUWAIT 176 199 218 126 187

ECUADOR 160 231 203 159 200

COLOMBIA 149 135 168 79 100

CHAD 133 101 110 80 76

RUSSIA 106 108 77 269 137

LIBYA 85 75 68 45 56



Country Apr-08 Mar-08 YTD 2008 Apr-07 YTD 2007

[omaar-101]

Total Imports of Petroleum (Top 15 Countries)

(Thousand Barrels per Day)

Drill all You want, You can`t produce the Oil these Countries provide, nor will you see a drop in price at the gas pumps.

CANADA 1,952 1,795 1,902 1,909 1,846

SAUDI ARABIA 1,453 1,535 1,519 1,458 1,358

MEXICO 1,259 1,232 1,230 1,460 1,471

NIGERIA 1,115 1,154 1,105 891 1,089

VENEZUELA 1,019 858 990 1,182 1,070

IRAQ 679 773 693 562 488

ANGOLA 579 384 469 514 556

ALGERIA 393 247 300 530 495

BRAZIL 201 188 182 175 174

KUWAIT 176 199 218 126 187

ECUADOR 160 231 203 159 200

COLOMBIA 149 135 168 79 100

CHAD 133 101 110 80 76

RUSSIA 106 108 77 269 137

LIBYA 85 75 68 45 56



Country Apr-08 Mar-08 YTD 2008 Apr-07 YTD 2007