McCain Goes Nuclear

Republican Presidential hopeful John McCain has offered up his latest idea for how to improve the energy situation in the US. He proposes the construction of 45 new nuclear power plants across the nation. That would increase the number of plants by 50% to 149. This, a day after his speech in which he called for offshore drilling, hits home the energy policy of doing nothing - which is what Congress and the Administration have done for decades. Even President Bush has come around to call for the end of the moratorium on offshore drilling because of the price of oil.

Watch for Obama and others to complain that nuclear power is not the answer. Sen. Harry Reid has an important say on any nuclear power plant construction since he's blocked the use of the nation's only nuclear waste repository from going live at Yucca Mountain.

Electricity generated by those nuclear power plants would be years into the future, but it would help establish the infrastructure from which other technologies could be rolled out, including plug in hybrids and other vehicles that do not have tailpipe emissions of today's vehicles. The current infrastructure is lacking the capacity to handle widespread plug-in usage.

Nothing that Obama has proposed as an energy policy actually creates one new kilowatt of energy or one additional gallon of oil - the economy on which the world relies. And petroleum is used for more than just heating and transportation. It's used in the creation of thousands of products.

Instead, he focuses on global warming and carbon emissions and taxes - taxing energy companies and using taxes as incentives to engage in research, which may never amount to anything or would go to areas of research that those companies are already engaging in without any incentives. Reducing carbon emissions takes precedence to actually generating power on which the nation relies.

UPDATE:
On cue, the Democrats in the House of Representatives have opened their collective mouths and offered up one of the worst ideas since Marx laid the foundation to communism.

These nitwits want to nationalize the nation's refineries. Yes folks, nationalizing the few remaining refineries in the US will somehow solve the nation's energy woes - the lack of stable supply, lack of domestic production, and the inability to build new refineries within the US.

This is what the Democrats are offering up in spades come November.

UPDATE:
Today's call to nationalize the country's refineries is on the heels of Rep. Maxine Waters suggesting nationalization of the oil industry.

This is all that the Democrats have to offer - socialism.

UPDATE:
Hot Air has the video and more analysis, including that they question why the oil industry was ever in private hands to begin with.

The whole notion of nationalizing the oil industry has been kicking around the ivory towers for a good long time, even though nationalizing has never actually been shown to improve whatever service one examines.

Kim at Wizbang also weighs in on Rep. Maurice Hinchey's (D-NY) comments.