Obama Administration To Provide Over $8 Billion In Loan Guarantees For Nuclear Power

The U.S. stands ready to construct its first new nuclear plant in almost thirty years following the Obama administration’s $8.3 billion loan guarantee to power provider Southern Company.

Obama cast the loan as a means to spur job creation during remarks before a Maryland branch of the electrical workers union Tuesday.

"It’s a plant that will create thousands of construction jobs in the next few years, and some 800 permanent jobs in the years to come,” Obama said. “This is only the beginning.  My budget proposes tripling the loan guarantees we provide to help finance safe, clean nuclear facilities.”

Obama added that the creation of nuclear power plants will help the U.S. remain competitive on the world stage.

“Our competitors are racing to create jobs and command growing energy industries,” Obama stated. “Nuclear energy is no exception.”

Added the president, “Whether it is nuclear energy, or solar or wind energy, if we fail to invest in these technologies today, we’ll be importing them tomorrow.”
  
Obama conceded that there are environmental drawbacks linked to nuclear power, including the waste created in the production process, but argued that the absence of carbon emissions makes nuclear power an attractive concept.

GOP Wants U.S. to Be a Leader in the “Nuclear Renaissance”

Members of the Senate Republican Conference have adopted the challenge of creating 100 new nuclear plants in the United States in the next 20 years. The main objective of the proposal is to produce more American energy while using less.

“If climate change is the inconvenient problem of the day, then nuclear power is the inconvenient answer,” said U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), Senate Republican Conference Chairman.

Alexander said it is “hard to imagine” why the most urgent solution would not be how to produce more nuclear energy in the next 20 years. He said without nuclear power, the U.S. would not have a chance of a clean air economy.

David Blee, executive director of the U.S. Transport Council, discussed the building process of the 100 new nuclear plants. There is currently only one nuclear energy plant under construction in the United States, TVA’s Watts Bar unit 2.

Blee said that nuclear energy is the “most potent clean energy baseload power option, the most powerful stimulator of jobs per megawatt and enjoys record performance reliability, safety, economics and strong public support.”

However, nuclear energy was removed from the stimulus package and there is not a nuclear title in the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s recently passed clean energy bill.

“To me this is almost a P.R. situation. I don’t think Americans are aware of the potential associated with nuclear power.” said Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.).

How does the U.S. approach Iran?

by Christina Lovato, University of New Mexico-Talk Radio News Service

"If the United States is able to set a new tone in context with the
relationship in Afghanistan and elsewhere I think in of that
itself will change the nuclear calculations of Iran's leadership."
said Karim Sadjadpour, an associate at the Carnegie Endowment for
International Peace.

In a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing titled "Iranian
Political and Nuclear Realities and U.S. Policy Options" witnesses
gave their recommendations on how the U.S. should approach Iran
concerning nuclear production. The hearing comes after a report
released by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) stating that
Natanz, an Iranian nuclear plant, has gained enough reactor-grade
uranium to allow Iran to create an atomic bomb.

Sadjapour focused on three key options that he thinks the U.S. should
follow. The first being to commence the dialogue with Iran by aiming
to build confidence on areas of common interest such as Afghanistan
and Iraq rather than the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the nuclear
issue. "Focus on Supreme leader in Iran, Khamenei not the President,
Ahmadinejad. If I had to describe him (Ahmadinejad) in one word, is
mistrustful...He believes that if you compromise you project
weakness." he said. Sadjapour also stated that it is imperative that
the U.S. maintain an airtight international approach saying that each
country should approach Iran with the same talking points.

Former U.S. Ambassador to Zambia and Egypt, Frank Wisner, said that Iran
is important, Iran is dangerous and Iran is urgent. "I do not believe
in the military option...there is no room for a military
response...the issues of national survival that are first and foremost
on Iran's mind gives me some hope that we can get traction if we chose
to engage and engage fully but I won't pretend for a moment that
dealing with Iranians will not be extremely tough. There will be many
setbacks and many deceptions...I personally welcome as I'm certain all
of us do, an appointment of a new special representative to take a
hard look at Iran and our foreign policies." he concluded.

US and IAEA lagging on nuclear proliferators

The Terrorism, Nonproliferation and Trade Subcommittee held a hearing this afternoon on the future of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), and global nuclear energy as a whole. The treaty, which aims to eliminate the spread of nuclear weapons, has gained increasing attention in light of North Korea's test of a nuclear weapon and Iran's nuclear program.

Pierre Goldschmidt, Senior Associate at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace said that examples of non-compliance that have been identified by the Board of Governors within the International Atomic Energy Association (IAEA) need to be acknowledged immediately. In particular, Goldschmidt pointed to North Korea and Egypt as gross violators of the agency's regulations.

Professor Orde Kitrie of the Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law at Arizona State said that the US needs to enforce stricter sanctions against nations who violate international nuclear agreements. He also said that any nation found to be in violation of these rules should be cut off from US exports indefinitely.

Jack Spencer, Research Fellow in the Thomas Roe Institute for Economic Policy Studies at the Heritage Foundation suggested that the US create an international fuel supply program to reduce international desire for a nuclear program to provide necessary power. He believes this program would reduce some of the workload for the IAEA, allowing the organization to focus on more dangerous proliferators.

McCain revs the "job engine"

Presumptive presidential nominee John McCain spoke at the 79th annual League of United Latin American Citizens. He said that over 400,000 jobs have been lost since September and gas has climbed to over $4.00 a gallon almost everywhere in America. He said that small businesses are the “job engine” of America and that there are over 2 million Latino owned small businesses. He said that this year small businesses have already created over 233,000 jobs.

He said, “If you believe you should pay more taxes, I’m the wrong candidate for you” McCain said that if elected he would reduce the estate tax to 15 percent and the business tax rate from 35 to 25 percent. He said that these tax cuts will help companies grow, which will be good for the job market and the country.

McCain said that if he were elected he would build 45 more nuclear power plants, which would create almost 1 million jobs by the year 2030. He said that America must end its dependence on foreign oil, and move towards more self-sustaining types of energy. He said that America has more coal that Saudi Arabia has oil and that if he were elected he would begin a clean coal energy project.