Dale Bumpers: “I came to the U.S. Senate in 1975. At that time, the nuclear debate was raging full blast. ``Shall we or shall we not…”

“I came to the U.S. Senate in 1975. At that time, the nuclear debate was raging full blast. ``Shall we or shall we not build more nuclear-electrical-generating plants?'' I just finished 4 years as Governor of my State. And we had built two nuclear plants up on the Arkansas River. I believe the total cost of both of those plants was $400 million. It was represented to me at the time, as Governor, that that would be by far the cheapest power we would ever know anything about. But after I came to the Senate and began to investigate the feasibility and the advisability of taking this country down the nuclear path, I quickly came to the conclusion that I would resist any additional nuclear plants. There was another highlight on the front burner called the Clinch River breeder reactor to be built on the Clinch River down in Tennessee. I remember in 1981, the Republicans took over this place, and Howard Baker, the Senator from Tennessee, and one of the finest men ever to serve in this body, became majority leader. I was trying to keep any additional nuclear plants from being licensed--and it was not a tough chore. A lot of people had made up their minds at that point that the nuclear option was not a good one. I fought for about 4 years to kill the Clinch River breeder.”