Debate Reflections- No. 2


I might seem to dislike Rudolph Giuliani. So in the interest of fair play, I'll try to help him here- by answering one of his questions at the 10/09/07 Repub Presidential debate in Dearborn, Michigan. Asked by co-host Maria Bartiromo of CNBC about drilling for oil off the coasts of Florida and of California, Rudolph replied in part "why the heck haven't we licensed a nuclear plant in thirty years?"

We haven't licensed a nuclear plant in thirty years, mayor, because there has been no application in thirty years. And why is that? Because when it comes to sucking up (money), the nuclear industry is better than Hoover. According to the Christian Science Monitor, Doug Koplow, president of Earth Track,a Massachusetts firm that analyzes subsidies for all forms of energy, estimates the nuclear energy industry receives approximately $9 billion annually in federal subsidies. Major cost overruns were common for nuclear facilities and nuclear power plants are far more expensive to build than coal- or gas- powered facilities.

Add energy policy to the list of subjects about which Rudolph Giuliani is defiantly ignorant.