well i'm going to washington d.c. and here's what's coming up tonight on the big picture germany has announced it's going green pledging to explore all renewable energy resources over the next decade so america take the hint we continue our dependency on nuclear power after voting to cut funds for the environmental protection agency one congressman is calling for action from the very same organization he attacked. another republican hypocrite on capitol hill and there's

a lot of voters or more some republicans annoyed at paul ryan's medicare bill the almost government shutdown and the battle of will on state budgets so with the g.o.p. voters still cast the same ballots today. germany is dropping nuclear power chancellor angela merkel announced plans yesterday to close down every single nuclear power plant in that country by twenty twenty two at seventeen reactors in all germany is the fourth largest economy in the world and the largest economy in europe and generates about a quarter of its electricity from nuclear power just like we do in the united states that already germany has shut down seven reactors in the wake of the focused human disaster and is now committed to doubling its renewable energy output by

twenty twenty two also currently germany employs nearly four hundred thousand people in the renewable energy field germany will join italy is the first two nations in the g eight that have officially gets nuclear power switzerland also announced plans to completely car about nuclear from its energy portfolio with their last reactor slated to. lows in two thousand and thirty four so here in the united states to me still have no plans to drop to clear power and switch to renewables and haven't really had an a long term energy plan since reagan so is what we're seeing in germany and switzerland an example of what government is capable of that it's not completely captured by special interests here to talk more about the issues jack spencer research fellow in nuclear energy policy at the heritage foundation jack welcome great to be here great to have us we have you with us first of all your response to the screaming headline financial times which is the business newspaper of the world or germany to close nuclear plants but i think it's really unfortunate for germany i mean it's a tremendous waste of resources quite frankly those are good nuclear power plants

providing a lot of power and if that's what the germans want to do then that's what the germans how do you have a similar with their million rooftops program i am putting solar panels on a million rooftops and that's fine what are what my generate right now they're generating enough power to equal eight no seven they're generating ten to get gigawatts of electricity going to school with our certainly good for them if they want to invest in expensive solar power you're welcome to do actually didn't cost them anything. because they got a battery really didn't cost government and it will cost someone has to pay for solar panels they don't drop from the sky but either way i think because i work very much that. that's not nuclear quickly as i don't play yeah it's not just because data that what i would what i would just what i would do what i would state quickly is that i think the barque market should make these determinations of consumers and energy producers want to go with solar and they should be free to do so if nuclear is the better a way if you are going to make a determination you don't have one single company that's willing to finance nuclear

power plant that states the obama administration offered eighteen billion dollars in subsidies we're back to you and ten billion of that still some of those old nobody will go near it oppose the ok and price anderson you know we would have nuclear power than as a person and that we were subsidizing nuclear power right now to the tune of the seven cents a kilowatt hour or so which is about. the retail cost of electricity and we are subsidizing a lot of stuff i would simply suggest that there are a lot of systemic problems we need to get nuclear waste fixed in this country the government should be in charge that if you produce the waste you should be responsible for managing it the regulatory dollars you not you want the nuclear industry to actually take care of its own extra alys that's going to ratchet back right now you've got cost it's thirty to forty cents a little hour for a lot of i would such as i would suggest when the government intervenes occurs a lot of inefficiencies and the nuclear and if that is the only reason there's a regular power in the united states is there going promoted in the nuclear industry from a commercial standpoint hasn't gone through the process that i think at the end would deal to an extraordinarily efficient industry and if it doesn't then i wouldn't suggest we build nuclear power plants just for the prestige or whatever to

build them i believe that nuclear power when subjected to the marketplace and there are examples of government stepping away when nuclear and when that happens nuclear does become very efficient to nuclear power plants in general those are the hundred stores that every single plant the united states is there's not a target price anderson or not without subsidy but what we wouldn't exist if the government didn't say we will be the insurer of last resort because no insurance company will insure him and there are plenty letter that's true that if you truly think everybody has them he has a lot there you have to look at you have to look at the history of why we have our sanderson i think that we need to move away from that model i think that we need to move away from government subsidized insurance whether it's for nuclear power insurance or whatever the case is but what the money just came out and said that with one hundred five years solar power is going to be cheaper than. going by i mean a sign me up buy new solar panel effects the cheapest way to produce energy i don't know that that's the case but if it is the market should make these determinations and we don't need to reverse on it and i don't you know i don't understand why

you're advocating nuclear you know mohamed. his original plan we now know from the various interrogations and whatnot that his original plan was not to hit the world trade center and to the indian point nuclear plant a lot fewer people probably would have died and he done well had he done that he would have had he hit the pool where the waste is next year instead of the. plant itself it would it would have to basically sterilize one hundred square mile one hundred mile radius area which i don't already know the city i didn't know and the only reason he didn't do it is because at the last minute he assumed well they've got to have missiles are technically which we don't have are still on here and we should and i would suggest so always nuclear waste i mean you know it's if we you know and in some cases three times as much nuclear waste sitting on top of these reactors as as in the fuel that that's true the government should be in charge of nuclear waste in this country if you look at our nuclear industry industries in charge of as i have to go that's a private company i'm not talking if you don't talk about japan energy we can do that kind of talk nuclear broadly i would say that nuclear energy can be done very affordably we see that there are the coop the costs are very low because the

operation costs are extraordinarily low for nuclear power the capital costs are high upfront capital costs are high for here is demand on earth and will and they can last one hundred years and the operating costs are very low we see that nuclear power is very safe in the service and we've not had there's not much that's been certified for forty years there's an affirmative one hundred years and so as a national side we don't have any sing any nuclear power plants and states that were certified for one hundred years or designed then we have nuclear power plants that were originally certified for forty years that's and then they got life extensions for another twenty years and then and then they go on to remodel your vermont yankee they're all alike freaked about well and the people from vermont have access to very clean very affordable energy because of it but if the people of vermont but the people of germany want to get rid of that valuable resource then you know maybe they can have they're having that debate right now i'm saying that the potential nuclear energy is significant let's let the market make those determinations the role of government should be to create an environment where the true market value of all energy sources can compete and i believe that you think

all the extra analogies the deaths from uranium mining means the poisoned i don't i don't i don't i don't know about raining i don't know about the deaths from commercial uranium mining there you have to tell me about that i actually have through a. list of information but i just got a thirty second because not because dollars because no one delivered. all the bags from uranium mine a million residents. increase killings on little you're already using it cancer it's not your axis of the drinking water increase in lucchino long renal cancers around spanish uranium mines. the united states he's looking at everything here is the united states except it's a rainy mining i think you know except. that thanks for being here it's always nice to have a life to be appreciated. and your report comes a coming out of japan shows the existence of churn over like dead zones areas that will be uninhabitable for centuries after the meltdown so oil samples twelve miles away from the platter showing off the charts radiation contamination one japanese

official even admitted the elevated levels are on par with the aftermath of a nuclear bomb test that spews plutonium also reports show the dangerous levels of radiation spread as far as two hundred thirty miles away from the fukushima plant as radiation continues to soar a new leaks are found in the crippled hopes to shut down focus shima within six to nine months of gaming unless we kick out the nuclear lobbyist and change course like the germans and swiss are doing in the italians and what's happening in fukushima could be just want to earthquake or tornado or terrorist attack away from happening or accident for them from happening here. in our republican hypocrisy news congressman lou barletta of pennsylvania has found two routes of attack on the government or specifically against the e.p.a. the environmental protection agency three months ago barletta joint every single house republican vote to slash the e.p.a.'s funding to regulate greenhouse gases

but now after trying to defund the e.p.a. to tear it apart to stop it congressman barletta is outraged that the e.p.a. isn't doing enough to protect their constituents in his district. for more on this i'm joined by marie dimond reporter and blogger at think progress dot org welcome thanks for having me nice to nice to see you here the the first call why is barletta so upset with the e.p.a. after you voted to defund it it's seems like it was made republican caucus is nothing new but this example is really so brazen it's almost impressive as you said three months ago where a lot of voted with the rest of the g.o.p. house got e.p.a. funding they said the e.p.a. regulations were burdensome on business that the e.p.a. was overreaching how garrett try to regulate greenhouse emissions how dare it right and supreme court so that it could yes but if it republicans don't like it idea way and you know so after attacking the e.p.a. for doing too much now barletta is furious that they're not doing more in his

district he says you know this whole story revolves around a resident saying that he got cancer from a tunnel near a superfund site and so now there are concerns about cancer cluster he investigated and said you know they address concerns of residence was that they were going to do for their testing. you know your letter went further proof that this was unacceptable sent a letter to each kid administrator lisa jackson you know saying that he was going to make sure if he did it's job in this business i think that she sent it back with a copy of his vote states what she should have but i think she probably rose above the fray but you know so is this really an example of republicans doing what they're doing for their campaign donors and then getting caught in the cross-fire of you know their elected officials and their constituents come to them and try to hold them accountable and we're seeing them all over the place doing this dance you know the paul ryan thing to you know you're going in you know with medicare oh no i did not say yes i don't know i did maybe i will i don't know if i

even simple money is getting into you know well i think i'd be in favor of that but maybe i wouldn't. know what it is. is this really just about the campaign cash right but i mean you especially when it comes to the e.p.a. that republicans have made say to see such a bogeyman you know they want a representative compared to they can stop now but when push comes to shove you know everyone like the e.p.a. does all of the gestapo if you run the largest independent coal or oil company the united states like the koch brothers here are in the last a year it's an ideological crusade that they're running under the guise of big pro business and trying to save taxpayers' money but you know i fell a republican christie todd whitman who ran the e.p.a. under bush you know wrote this op ed where he called the republicans out for the short sighted destructive thinking that they're trying to do by apology yeah. the how many how many deaths you think it's going to take i mean the e.p.a. was founded back in the nixon administration and and it was because you know the

coyote river caught on fire people were dying from asthma it was starting to get really well documented cancer all these kind of things and so they said it was clean this country up and in fact china is no talk of this in china. the big story in the in the financial times today but maybe was just ridiculous. here's the here's the e.p.a. and it's actually saving lives in america and i don't understand how you can campaign against that against again saving lives that richard nixon started right well you know it's worth mentioning that it flies in the face of public opinion you know and our lot is own district one poll found that seventy percent of voters disapproved of his vote to get the e.p.a. and that included a majority of republicans so you know what percentage of the voters in the district you know that he put together you know what i have that's an important question but you know when they were asked whether they you know approved of his voting for had he from lebanon carbon dioxide pollution from the opening amounts of arsenic and mercury you know overwhelmingly people are in favor of these sorts of things that

incredibly entitled position to hold it's if you think about is going to face a passionate backlash or is the bet that the republicans are making you know years an eternity in politics voters' attention spans are short we have nationally t.v. and that most people don't even pay attention to work politicians are doing until three weeks before the election and barletta just figures he can get enough money from the koch brothers to run the bad. you know but watch the whole game right because that's exactly the gamble as you know they're hoping that they can continue with this you know anti regulation broader right that they can continue denying science and then when it comes to actually doing things their particular constituents want they hope that people have short memories and they just do the things they like anyway it's amazing thanks so much for being with us i appreciate most which are. the republican war on the e.p.a. boils down to just one thing in my mind higher profits for oil executives in fact let me expand on this a little bit the original e.p.a.

power you know came from congress richard nixon came up with the idea but then you know last year the year before this came before the supreme court and the conservative majority on the court so the e.p.a. should have the right to regulate carbon dioxide as a people. i mean other words it is because carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas and it produces will be i mean it's not something that we inhale it causes cancer isn't that it's a pollutant in that it is damaging the world so you have this supreme court ruling on this really on the legality of this law and and you have the functional reality of it and new information came out just today about global warming is from the international energy agency that last year we will we released into the atmosphere thirty point six gigatons thirty point six billion tons of carbon dioxide more than ever before and now scientists are saying you know that two degrees celsius that we

said would be a disaster we're now worried that you know there's no way to stop that and we're going to try and hold the whole bike at four degrees celsius and and which is right in chicago there you know swamp trees because they're going to have the climate of baton rouge you know. none of this takes into consideration the extra analogies associated with with basically pollution the stuff that the e.p.a. deals with whether it's c o two or whether it's other things for example cancers as much global warming oil spills all of these things have costs associated with them but the carbon industry doesn't pay any of those costs you and i pay those costs when we or our kids get asthma or cancer or or any any of these conditions from breathing these things or when the people in joplin missouri or other places where these wild storms that clearly have some association with their being five percent or more secure in the in the atmosphere when there was twenty years ago with global warming when these happen we end up paying for it not the oil companies that's

something that we need to change we need to don't these extra maladies into their lap and if we're going to be going after people individually or holding c.e.o.'s accountable start with b.p. and massey. time for our daily poll your chance to tell us what you think here's today's question germany is dropping nuclear power will the usa follow their lead and drive nuclear power as well the choices are yes germany generates about a quarter of its electricity from nuclear power just like we do in the united states we can do what they do or no nuclear lobbyist will succeed in aiding the way for more nuclear energy by going to tom dot com let us know what you think hold you up until tomorrow morning. after the break if the twenty twelve elections were to happen today the republicans maintain the upper hand answer may surprise you.

let's not forget that we had an apartheid regime right. i think. either one well. we have the government says they're for keeping safe get ready because their freedom.

you know sometimes you see a story and it seems so silly you think you understand it and then you glimpse something else hears you some other part of it and realize everything you thought you knew you don't i'm sorry welcome to the big picture.

there is a new republican hostage scenario unfolding the victims this time are those who suffered through the joplin missouri tornado tragedy last week and are in desperate need of government help residents of joplin are resorting to using elephants to help clean up take a look. republicans have agreed to send some aid money their way but only if democrats agree to go along with cuts elsewhere house majority leader eric cantor explained their man's on c.b.s. is face the nation over the weekend. because families don't have unlimited money and really neither does the federal government there's no question there's a federal role here the congress will fund the money and will be off and until the president comes forward. this is coming from the same party that threaten to raise taxes on all americans if millionaires and billionaires didn't get their tax cuts too this is the same party that nearly shut down the government over funding for

planned parenthood and it's also the party that threatening to force the u.s. government into default if democrats don't agree to trillions of dollars in cuts in social safety nets and paul ryan's budget plan the privatizers medicare reminds me of an old national lampoon magazine cover from january seventy three it featured a dog with a gun to it said that read don't buy this magazine will kill his dog today republicans have recast that iconic replacing the dog with gramma or a tornado victim in joplin depending on what week it is so how can this clearly radical and heartless agenda that republicans are pursuing be good for america or even good politically for that matter here offer his take on the issues is conservative commentator t.j. mccormick t.j. welcome. thanks thanks tom nice to be back and to see if thank you as far as you can remember has our government ever been stingy with money when it comes to helping american victims of natural disasters or is eric cantor the first. no no

actually i kind of you know i kind of reject the the premise here in the sense that i believe that it's actually democrats who are holding all this up all they need to do is prioritize try aura ties those people who need help in joplin another tornado affected areas congress has to appropriate money you know the cost to democrats and not only in the house of representatives is run by the republicans right now and that's what has to originate and eric cantor said we're not going to give any money to the people of joplin unless the democrats will agree to to cut something that's got some money from grandma let's cut some no can no cutting from billionaires the you can't do that no raising taxes on billionaires can't do that but you got to cut something from grandma or from the environment or something. right why is it that the democrats why is it the left that we see always seeks to punish why do we have to punish and take away from people's hard earned money in order to isolate it's a very cutting cancer of the republican who is saying that's not democrats. exactly exactly exactly my point and that's what i'm saying is that what he wanted wanted

to grammar the environment. i mean you know i'd like to maybe punish n.p.r. once and for all i'd like to ones i'd like to maybe take some money away from it from artists that that that try to live off the government teat you know how about cutting somebody is this silly arts funding and like i mentioned the aforementioned n.p.r. which is a leftist organising so you know if so you're you're you're agreeing with and proving the thesis of the klein's book the shock doctrine about disaster capitalism but that what you do is you get your agenda ready but the things that you want to cut it would be politically unpopular you force them through in the face of disasters. actually i think i think what this exposes is i'm not familiar with that book i mean if that's what i'm doing then i know that's what i'm good. at and really help you if i can help your cause well though the thing is here is i believe i believe this thing is being politicized if it i can't believe that the democrats not willing to relive you know what again i think they were never asked only on the

house of representatives they don't have the power to know great money to give to job. well then well then then what the motive is then what is what is that this going to have you know or is told by john boehner eric cantor and eric cantor is that we will not appropriate money for the people in joplin who right now are you know there's people like dying in hospitals and things we're not going to give these people a penny until the democrats decide you know they're going to go along with us on the money to grandma's money went to the environment and the money to n.p.r. . yes exactly and you know what the thing is tom is that we have to remember here that while we need to absolutely help our brothers and sisters in peril is that what we have to remember is the overlord fact here is that the country is hurting financially i recently have had to make changes in my life i've had to prioritize and i'm going to take money away from certain things i think to make cuts my wife and i our daughter have had to make cuts in certain aspects of our daily lives in order to say pay for our exorbitant health care for example so you're saying we

have to you're saying that because ronald reagan tripled our national debt and spent more money than ever in debt that every president from george washington jimmy carter combined right reagan ran up three trillion dollars for the deficit bush added another two and a half trillion to that and then the new bush added another spiral six trillion of that because all these republicans ran up these massive debt deficit of course bill clinton actually balanced the budget. where things are and we've got to take money away from grandma and from the environment to pay back the money that bush and reagan borrowed to try and make the economy look good. my head is exploding here this recession this latest bush what about this latest bush that we have in the us we're sending our slides frozen dollars he's our latest bush this guy this guy is is just continuing the bush doctrine this guy just got us into a third war for crying out loud and he is gone and spend more money by one man in the history of the rule disguised as take on the deficit us that it's taken to true but look honestly tom i think to get back to that sort of set the whole point here

i believe it is absolutely the fiscally responsible thing and i bet you dollars to . doenitz the people in joplin missouri would be the first ones to say we absolutely want to see this done we don't want to take money it's if it's not done the right way because that is the of that is the bunch that's the cleaners that fly over country the much disparaged bunch. and the left and the interesting too by the way you know it's of and i'm watching this very curiously because there is something that's sort of missing from this picture which is why the democrats are not jumping all over this is not exactly a colorful bunch if you get my drift there is not too many people of color in this so the democrats are looking to find their way to get it to politicise you suggested the democrats only support communities when they're when they're when they're largely african-american or something as you try to make a goal to. new orleans i don't know what's most. give that's that's actually

what i'm saying and i'm saying that the areas that are racist attitude there isn't that sexy racist that the democrats can throw i think you're going to actually respirations the edge on it right now i think i as i said the democrats are saying it's a good start but i was using that use i just that's a good bit away god if you do your show ok here's your letter as don't have the power to appropriate the money this is in the hands of john boehner and eric cantor so why don't they just say doing the real thing they're doing the right thing they're doing the right thing we have to have to have to start somewhere and unfortunately we are not in a blank check mode and you know it's just it's it's not and you know what and they're doing the right thing because as we are we're having this conversation the congress just voted down a raising of the debt ceiling very very quickly are issuing why is the thing that republicans are in the blank check mode when there's a republican in the white house and some as a democrat comes out of the white house they're screaming about the debt that they ran up. you know what i agree with you on that one it's on that is one of the

biggest disappointment disappointments of the w. bush in my own reagan service estimate and reagan absolutely i do know there are a big disappointments that's not with that was the change we voted for then and we certainly don't like it now so i am in agreement with you on that i'm ok well you should take it up with jude when scheme is the strategist a way to go reagan you know bankrupt the government and then the government and then the democrats will have to stop giving money and be in santa clause and you know t.j. thanks for being with us from it it's always good to see it thank you and truth is in less than five months republicans are on our nation frankly have worn out their welcome with the american electorate paul ryan's plans privatized medicare were soundly rejected by voters last week in a special election in new york's twenty sixth district where a democrat won the seat for just the fourth time since eighteen fifty seven but elsewhere a whole bunch of republican governors are facing a much different electoral landscape after a half year union busting and screwing over working families this wave of voters

remorse is displayed loud and clear in a new series of polls but public policy polling that asks voters in a number of states who they'd vote for if the two thousand and ten elections were held against a de publican governor john casey in ohio by two points in two thousand and ten but would lose by twenty five points today florida republican governor rick scott won by just one point two thousand and ten but would lose by nineteen points today michigan governor rick scott want to handily by eighteen points in two thousand and ten but the voters would kick him out and his emergency financial planner cronies out of office today by two points and wisconsin the same goes with the same voters gave scott walker a six point victory in two thousand and ten would have hand him a seven point loss today i will republicans governor terry branstad won by ten points in two thousand and ten but would lose by two points that day and finally in georgia governor nathan deal would see is ten point win in two thousand and ten morphed into a one point last.