Sen. John Edwards’s first big test as a
would-be presidential candidate was the ongoing debate about Yucca
Mountain, Nevada, and storage there of nuclear waste. And he
apparently did the right thing. But not without a bit of drama.
Edwards was seen a potential swing vote in yesterday’s Senate
vote which by 60-39 affirmed Yucca Mountain as the sole repository
of nuclear waste for U.S.-based facilities. Back in 2000, he’d
announced his opposition to Yucca, then several months later
flip-flopped and voted for it.
But who’s to say a guy can’t change his mind a second or third
time? Environmental groups had expended a lot of energy meeting
with Edwards and his staff, but evidently those meetings fell
short. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce had made a moderate media buy
in the Tarheel state, running radio ads touting Yucca Mountain.
Those ads were a clear reminder to Edwards that the business
community, with all its donors, was watching his vote.
His Yucca vote won’t endear him to enviro groups, but it will
endear him to homestate voters, who’ll be glad to see their nuclear
waste going out of state. And more important to a presidential
aspirant, this is one vote that won’t come back to haunt
Edwards.
“If he’d flipped on this one, it wouldn’t have been a huge deal
in the short-term, but it might have been something held against
him in a presidential campaign,” says an Edwards adviser. “Those
flip-flop issues always have a way of popping up on the trail.”
While Edwards may have passed his test, it isn’t clear that Sen.
Harry Reid of Nevada passed his. Reid, who serves
as Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle’s No. 2, and
who is influential in the Senate appropriations process, was doing
everything he could to buy votes to block Yucca Mountain’s approval
in the Senate and keep nuclear waste out of his state.
According to Senate sources, Reid was offering individual
senators special appropriations funding for pet projects and new,
improved committee assignments in return for their votes. Those
less receptive to sugar got the heat. Reid is said to have
threatened several Democratic colleagues with loss of Senate
subcommittee chairmanships if they didn’t vote his way.
In the end, Reid’s arm twisting and cajoling didn’t appear to
carry much weight, which has to be frustrating and worrisome to
him. Right?
“He expended a lot of energy and doesn’t have anything to show
for it,” says one Democratic Senate staffer. “But this was such a
hot potato issue for many of the guys, it isn’t like we’re talking
about a budget deal. This wasn’t going to be an easy issue to buy a
vote or two. Reid’s influence can’t be judged on this one.”
But others disagree. Some Democratic staffers say that Reid
tends to pull out the hammer for votes, using threats and
strong-arm tactics to keep the Democrats in line. “He’s not the
most popular guy in the Senate from a personality level,” says
another Democratic staffer. “I think a more popular deputy leader
might have done better with an issue like Yucca, especially when
you think about the fact that this was something everyone knew was
important to him personally.”
Still others say it’s all hogwash. “It says more about the slim
margin the Democrats have than anything about Reid,” says a
Republican staffer. “He’s liked just fine, but when you have a one
or two seat margin of error, you have to play hardball to keep
those votes in line. It isn’t easy, but that is what a leader has
to do.”
As for Yucca, the debate isn’t over. The Senate vote simply
re-affirmed the Nevada site as the sole repository of nuclear waste
for the nation. Yucca Mountain must now file for an operating
license with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Lawsuits from its
opponents are expected to drag the debate out perhaps for
years.
