Tennessee U.S. Senate Candidate Willing To Sacrifice Senate Majority Leader Over Nuclear Power
Posted on May 16, 2008 at 7:02 amDemocratic U.S. Senate candidate Mike Padgett is apparently not afraid to take maverick stances and buck his own party when he needs to. According to Joe Lance, Padgett believes in nuclear power and also believes in taking on the Democratic Majority Leader in order to create workable plans for its expansion:
He also indicated a preference to keep nuclear power at the forefront of our ongoing plans—and not a little distaste for Nevada Senator Harry Reid’s efforts to keep radioactive by-products from being deposited under Yucca Mountain. “This issue is bigger than Harry Reid; it’s the nation. If it takes the (elimination) of a man of my own party [from the Senate],” he flatly declared, “then we don’t have a choice.”
Yucca Mountain, a ridge line in the south-central part of the U.S. state of Nevada, is located in a desert on federal land adjacent to the Nevada Test Site in Nye County, Nevada.
Senator Harry Reid of Nevada opposes the Yucca Mountain Repository, a U.S. Department of Energy deep geological repository storage facility for spent nuclear reactor fuel and other radioactive waste, which sits on the land. Since he has become Majority Leader, Reid has used his considerable power to block any progress in nuclear waste storage at the Repository.
Mike Padgett, a former Knox County Clerk, is running against Former Tennessee Democratic Party Chair Bob Tuke and five other candidates in the Democratic primary in order to face off against Senator Lamar Alexander in the fall.
UPDATE: The Padgett campaign issues a clarifying statement on the candidate’s views regarding Yucca Mountain and Senator Harry Reid:
“Nuclear power is but one of our energy options, and it shouldn’t be ruled out as long as it is economical and safe, U.S. Senate Candidate Mike Padgett said Friday.
“But a big part of the safety question is how to dispose of the waste, and I don’t feel like Yucca Mountain should be off the table,” Padgett said. “I respectfully disagree with Leader Harry Reid on this, but that is a far cry from calling for his head.
“As we try to do what’s best for the American people, there’s always room for respectful debate among Democrats, and I look forward to being part of that debate and to working with Senator Reid.”
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Vibinc
Mike Padgett’s Unveils “Energy 2.0″
Posted on May 9, 2008 at 2:25 pmIn the wake of Lamar Alexander’s speech this morning announcing a new “Manhattan Project” for energy independence, one of Alexander’s Democratic opponents, former Knox County Clerk Mike Padgett, has released his own plan called “Energy 2.0.”
Like Alexander, Padgett discusses expanding the use of nuclear power and finding ways to burn coal cleaner. Absent in Padgett’s 10 point plan, however, there is in depth discussion of and heavy reliance on plug-in cars.
Padgett, always the populist, calls for Detroit to build more efficient hybrid vehicles. “We know electric-hybrid technology can reach in the neighborhood of 48 mpg already. In the nation that produced Henry Ford and Bill Gates, we can find a way.”
Padgett also calls for using the tax code to reward energy innovators and punish those wedded to the old ways, “Eliminate the $17 billion in tax breaks previously given to Big Oil companies and set those tax dollars aside in a trust fund to invest in renewable and efficient energy. Levy a windfall profit tax on the oil industry to help fill the trust fund.”
Padgett plan also calls for companies to buy pollutions credits so that polluters can pay for developing more renewables and making them “part of the power grid.”
See the whole plan here.
Internet Geeks Have Blogs, Mike Padgett Has A Journal
Posted on May 1, 2008 at 7:23 pmU.S. Senate candidate Mike Padgett, taking on Bob Tuke in the Democratic primary (among others) to face Lamar Alexander in fall, has started a blog called “The View From The Front Porch.” From the first posting:
What can you do, one fellow asked me, about the lack of discipline in schools? Schools were on my mind because I had spoken with a young wife, a working mom, just before we got there. Unlike so many of our young people, she had chosen to stay here in the community where her folks are, but she, like my friend at lunch, is frustrated with the public schools. She has enrolled her kids in private school.
Well, I offered the same answer to both of them: We need to think outside the box about schooling. And we might want to take a cue from home-schoolers.
Actually, according to the email announcement, “The View From the Front Porch” is not a blog. The word blog is not used. Sure, there will be dated entries, internally they are using some sort of blogging software and the url says “/blog” but its not a blog, it’s a journal.
Whatever it takes, I suppose. Welcome to the party, Mr. Padgett.
Mirrorball
Posted on April 18, 2008 at 6:54 amFrom the Commercial Appeal:
U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander told military leaders in Millington on Thursday that better benefits and education opportunities are the key to successful Navy recruitment and retention.
I could’ve sworn I’d just heard about somebody talking about stuff like this.
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Alexander Tax Plan Falls Flat With Opponents
Posted on April 17, 2008 at 6:37 pmU.S. Senate Candidate Bob Tuke calls out Senator Lamar Alexander today in a posting on the national blog Huffington Post:
Senator Alexander, I want to give you the benefit of the doubt. I’m hoping that this is not a tawdry political stunt.
To put this perception to rest, I propose that you show us your budget for your new tax plan.
Show us how you fund our troops, care for our veterans, fully fund a sensible GI Bill and pay down the massive debt you’ve run up.
Show us how you will protect Social Security and Medicare.
Show us how the thousands Tennessee families keep homeowner exemptions at tax time.
Tell us what you would cut. Education? Health care? Social Security? Homeland Security? Student Loans? Corporate welfare for big oil companies?
Senator Alexander this is your chance to put me in my place. Prove to me this isn’t an election year gimmick.
Better yet, let’s schedule a public meeting to discuss it. Bring your plan. We will invite the media and have a calm chat about your plan.
I’m calling your bluff. I want to see your hole card.
Mike Padgett just hours later had a few words to share with our senior Senator on the falt tax as well:
“If Senator Alexander were serious about lifting some of the load off of the working class, he would not have voted at least a dozen times to block tax cuts that were targeted for middle- and lower-income taxpayers,” Padgett said.
“What about tax cuts that would really make a difference in the working family’s budget – a tuition tax credit equal to 50 percent of college costs, for example, or a first-time homeowner tax credit? How about doubling the tax credit for child-care expenses?
Post Politics: 14 April 2008 - Afternoon Edition
Posted on at 11:35 amSteering into the storm: Bill Hobbs unleashes yet another polemic press release concerning Barack Obama.
The risk of re-segregation: Issues of race color the student assignment in Metro.
If Nashville wants to build a new convention center, it will first have to shift at least $11 million dollars of expenses back to the city’s general fund – most of which currently subsidize the Sommet Center. But we’ll worry about that later.
Congressman Jim Cooper confronts the problem of separating the worthy and the unworthy potential seekers of assistance in shaping policy on the present housing crisis.
Putting baby in a corner: Two journalists say Phil Bredesen essentially gave up Congressman Lincoln Davis’s confidential thoughts on his superdelegate vote.
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Post Politics: 9 April 2008
Posted on April 11, 2008 at 2:52 pmIndependent candidate for Congress in District 9, Jake Ford, accuses the Commercial Appeal of “journalistic terrorism” in its reporting on statements he made about who is racially qualified to represent the district.
Much has been made of a Sen. Roy Herron bill which would give a state board the power to determine how the Bible is to be taught in public school. Catherine McTamaney argues that it is not the biblical aspect that is new here, but the level at which the state gets involved.
The LA Times reports on how those snappy little political YouTube ads are produced for the Web.
The Politico argues that Hillary Clinton’s management of her campaign may reflect badly on her ability to run a government.
Rules have been adopted in Metro which allow city workers to continue to spray for mosquitoes in an area even if property owners object or pedestrians are present.
Democratic Leadership Council founder Al From wonders whether Barack Obama can change the electoral map with his refreshing new appeals to voters across traditional divides.
Ilissa Gold reports that plans to move the Bellevue library to a new site at an improved Bellevue Mall are well underway.
Andy Sher reports that revenue shortfalls have put state worker pay raises in jeopardy.
Some state officials see the federal government’s plan to overhaul the country’s financial regulatory systems as an intrusion on their powers, says Stateline.
Photos of the “Flying Spaghetti Monster” statue outside a Crossville courthouse. The Spaghetti monster is a popular symbol among atheists and agnostics used to illustrate the unlikelihood of the existence of religious truth.
Breaking Bad: A new report reveals that homebuyers using mortgage brokers were often directed towards higher-interest loans.
A Vanderbilt professor releases a 74-page paper calling for Tennessee to adopt a state income tax.
One journalist notes that House Speaker Jimmy Naifeh is engaging in more raw politics as his power is threatened in the legislature.
The Amendment makes the bill: Reporter Joe White explains the concept of a “caption bill.”
Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Mike Padgett asserts that Tennesseans are fed up with the war in Iraq and want their troops home.
Monkey Business: A delegate for Barack Obama steps down after racially interpreted remark.
Presidential candidate Mike Gravel releases yet another YouTube video where he covers Beatles tunes in a way only he can.
The Jackson Sun reports that Tennessee wildlife officers will no longer auction off weapons seized from hunters violating game laws on the courthouse steps. The weapons will instead be shipped to Nashville for sale in licensed gun shops.
The issue of trade with Colombia divides the political house of Clinton.
Where the white women at? Event coordinators for Michelle Obama make explicit their need for diversity at a campaign event.
The failure of a bill in a state house subcommittee means that the judicial selection committee may still meet in private.
The Memphis Daily News covers the battle of conservatives in the District 7 congressional primary.
A report by the Government Accountability Office in Washington exposed federal employees charging exorbitant amounts of money for Internet dating, tailor-made suits, lingerie, lavish dinners and other questionable expenses to their government credit cards over a 15-month period.
Clarksville Online thinks a new strategy is needed to advance environmental legislation through the Tennessee Legislature.
Nashville Mayor Karl Dean invites to his home members of WIN, a bipartisan group dedicated to helping recruit, train and elect qualified women to state and local offices in Tennessee.
The Wall Street Journal reports that the smart money, at first bearish on John McCain’s prospects, is now starting to flow in.
And finally, Ken Whitehouse discusses West Tennessee Democrats on the downslope of political prominence.
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Post Politics: 4 April 2008 - Afternoon Edition
Posted on April 8, 2008 at 9:52 amArmy Reservist, former state Senate candidate and blogger of some repute, Bob Krumm, has been called up to active duty in Iraq. Krumm will serve a six month tour as an analyst while taking a leave of absence from his employer, D.F. Chase, Inc.
Brendan Loy comments on Hillary Clinton’s assertion that their is no such thing as a “pledged” delegate to the Democratic convention.
Williamson County Sheriff Ricky Headley shares some insight into how he became addicted to prescription drugs.
Sean Braisted tells Hillary Clinton that the last thing we need in government is another “Czar.”
One member of the gun rights community is none too pleased with the Tennessee Republican Party’s public request for a list of the state’s handgun carry permit holders.
Jeff Woods keeps a running tally on matters of state our governor isn’t all that motivate to engage.
Liberal activist Jim Grinstead sums up the persona of John McCain as “right-wing with moderate warps and maverick feints.”
Robert Kennedy announces the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1968 on a campaign stop in Indiana.
Southern Beale notes the difference between John McCain’s impressions of Martin Luther King Jr. yesterday and today.
Steve Cohen suggests that his independent opponent, Ford family political scion Jake Ford, grab up a subscription to National Geographic.
And if you’d like to include a little politics in your weekend plans, Democratic U.S. Senate candidates Bob Tuke and Mike Padgett will both be participating in Mule Day celebrations Saturday in Columbia.
Republican incumbent Lamar Alexander with be there, too – appearing with Democratic Congressman Lincoln Davis, according to an Alexander press release. They will be discussing federal funds they procured for the historic James K. Polk home.
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