The US should build 100 more nuclear plants rather than spend "billions
in subsidies" for renewable energy if it is truly committed to lowering electric
bills and having clean air, the Republicans say.
In the
party's weekly radio and internet address, Senator Lamar Alexander said the
United States should follow the example of France, which promoted nuclear power
decades ago. Today, nuclear plants provide 80 percent of France's electricity,
and the country has one of the lowest electric rates and carbon emissions in
Europe, he said.
In contrast, renewable electricity
provides roughly 1.5 percent of the nation's electricity, according to
Republicans. Double it or triple it, and "we still don't have much", the
Tennessee Republican said.
"There is a potentially a
dangerous energy gap between the renewable electricity we want and the reliable
electricity we must have," he said.
In contrast to
Democrats, Alexander said Republicans:
-Start with
conservation and efficiency. "We have so much electricity at night, for example
we could electrify half our cars and trucks and plug them in while we sleep
without building one new power plant."
-Seek to keep bills
down. "Democrats say, put a big new national sales tax on electric bills and
gasoline."
-Wish to find more natural gas and oil
offshore. "Farmers, homeowners and factories must have the natural gas. And more
of the oil we'll still need should be ours, instead of sending billions
overseas."
AP