The Return of Phil Bryant's Nuclear Waste

It's been a few months since we last heard a story about plans to store nuclear waste in Mississippi. After what seemed to be some unease about storage in the state, the nuclear storage mess is back.

The government is pursuing a new plan for nuclear waste storage, hoping to break an impasse left by the collapse of a proposal for Nevada's Yucca Mountain. The Energy Department says it expects other states will compete for a repository, and the accompanying economic benefits, and it's already heard from potential hosts in New Mexico, Texas and Mississippi. But the plan faces hurdles including a need for new legislation that has stalled in Congress.

Peter Lyons, an assistant secretary for nuclear energy at the U.S. Energy Department, said it cannot make plans for individual sites until the passage of legislation creating a new framework for waste policy. But he said the groups in southeastern New Mexico, western Texas and Mississippi are only the most public of potential hosts to express interest in taking in high-level waste.

Let's connect the dots again.

Phil Bryant went to France and Brazil to visit with nuclear energy officials, Bryant then got it in his head that nuclear storage would be good for Mississippi, Haley Barbour also thinks nuclear waste storage in Mississippi is a good idea, GOP politico Andy Taggart said it was a bad idea, Bryant went ahead with the plans anyway.

Bryant needs federal legislation to help push his plans forward, yet we have not received any indication how Mississippi's very own Sen. Cochran feels about this issue. In fact, we have not heard how Cochran feels about much these days. Don't expect Haley and Phil to push Thad on the issue with only a week remaining in a very nasty GOP primary for the Senate seat. There really could be a meltdown.