Candidate sees Southern Nevada as ‘nuclear center for excellence’

RENO -- To the applause of a crowd of 100 people, Congressional District 2 candidate Kirk Lippold on Wednesday called for the construction of two nuclear power plants at the Nevada National Security Site and the use of the Yucca Mountain site as the national center of nuclear fuel reprocessing.

During a 70-minute debate against state Sen. Greg Brower, R-Reno, and former state senator and former state GOP Chairman Mark Amodei, Lippold often stood out and attracted crowd attention. All three candidates espoused conservative positions, calling for approval of a federal deficit ceiling, the curtailment of illegal immigration, the end of federal grants to Planned Parenthood and less government regulation.

They are the leading Republican contenders for the congressional seat, which became vacant with the appointment of Rep. Dean Heller to the U.S. Senate. The district covers all of Nevada, except for the heavily populated urban portions of Clark County.

Seventeen Republicans have filed for the seat, but Amodei, Lippold and Brower were the only ones invited to participate in the debate by the Nevada Republican Assembly, a conservative group . The debate was held at Reno's Boys and Girls Club.

Lippold, a retired Navy commander with no previous political experience, made the most controversial statements when he brought up nuclear energy and Yucca Mountain, 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas.

In an interview after the debate, he said putting two nuclear plants on the site formerly known as the Nevada Test Site would "power Nevada and begin powering the Southwest."

He said he realized many Las Vegans won't like his position, but he has to consider the future of the entire state.

"I am not going to focus just on a small population in Las Vegas," Lippold said.

"We have a national security issue with our dependence on foreign oil," continued Lippold, who was the commander of the USS Cole when it was attacked by terrorists in Yemen in 2000. "Open Yucca Mountain. Develop a processing facility there."

Lippold, a graduate of Carson High School, said the Southern Nevada area could become the "nuclear center for excellence in the United States."

Amodei and Brower did not respond to his suggestions, other than Amodei saying he favored the development of nuclear power.

Brower clearly angered Amodei when he pointed out that Amodei had proposed a record tax increase during the 2003 legislative session.

"It puts him on the wrong side of where Republicans are now," Brower said. "Mark also fought for the expansion of collective bargaining for state employees. I fought against it. I have a conservative record."

Noting he also served in the Navy, Brower said he has "tremendous respect" for Lippold's service record.

"But this position calls for more than military experience," added Brower, noting his record as U.S. attorney for Nevada and as a legislator. "You haven't been there as a legislator making tough calls, taking unpopular positions."

Amodei said that his support of tax increases in 2003 was meant to avoid the passage of a Nevada income tax and that his support of collective bargaining was an attempt to "blow up the teachers union."

Lippold acknowledged his political inexperience but said his 26-year Navy career gave him "life experience around the world defending U.S. interests. This isn't an election for business-as-usual politics."

Brower drew his biggest cheers when he called for the elimination of the federal Department of Education.

"We need the federal government out of education," said Brower, noting that he served on the Senate Committee on Education and worked to pass reforms such as "getting rid of teachers who aren't proficient."

Amodei adopted a more humorous approach during the debate than the other candidates did.

"Hats off to (U.S. Rep.) Paul Ryan for his deficit reduction plan," Amodei said of the Wisconsin Republican. "He grabbed a bat and went up to the plate. I haven't seen anything from the other side. Major kudos for the elephant team."

Contact Capital Bureau Chief Ed Vogel at evogel@reviewjournal.com or 775-687-3900.