. >> reporter: talking to nbc bay area news from washington, d.c., marion of the nuclear energy institute saysbu it's too earlyo know if radiation will make its way to the u.s. with 104 power plants on american soil, including a facility located in san luis obispo, there are now questions if what is happening in japan could happen here. marion says it's unlikely. >> from the risk perspective, the risk is very, very small, very, very low. each of those plants on the west coast has been designed to withstand earthquakes, as well as tsunamis. >> reporter: and hopefully the facility in japan will be strong enough to withhold a complete meltdown there. >> there are multiple barriers that prevent this. and that's why with the experience of three-mile island and other incidents, nuclear designers have learned, and they have not only by common sense, but also by law, have to implement multiple, multiple redundant safety systems. >> reporter: and in pennsylvania's three mile island, there was a partial core meltdown, but not a significant release of radiation into the environment. tonight japan is

for morn what a nuclear meltdown could mean, we turn to the president of the nuclear energy institute marvin furtel. he has been in the industry for more than 35 years. welcome to "meet the press." i under you represent the industry's interest in this. i want to start exactly what happened with this reactor. we have a graphic. we know the reactor shut down. the iraq cut off power and made site there was no mechanism to cool the reactor. explain some more. >> good morning, chuck. i'm pleased to be here. let me take a second and tell the people of japan that they have our sympathy and our support and also that we appreciate very much what the workers at fukushima are doing to protect the people offsite. to answer your question specifically after the earthquake it appeared like everything should and the diesels kicked on and cooling the core and doing what they needed to do to keep the reactor under control. we think the tsunami then caused more damage and cut off their ability to continue to cool the core. so the reactor shut down safely. they did get cooling going then they lost about

. >> reporter: the nuclear energy institute, which speaks for the industry, considers judgments like that premature. after the japanese reactors are shut down, the industry says there will be time to study what happened and what should change. for now, the institute's richard myers calls evidence of extensive radioactive leaks limited at best. myers claims while many of the japanese plant's systems failed, the primary safety features did not. >> the reactor vessel, which holds the fuel and the primary containment, which holds the reactor vessel are not breached. the technology is doing what it is supposed to do. >> reporter: two new nuclear plants, one in georgia and in south carolina, are expecting to get permits later this year. the president has called for $36 billion in government-backed loan guarantees for new nuclear reactors and more than $800 million for nuclear energy research. a year ago, there was talk of a nuclear renaissance in the united states. >> to meet our growing energy needs and prevent the worst consequences of climate change, we'll need to increase our supply of

. >> we want to tell you that the nuclear energy institute said it would have appeared on camera but our request tonight came too late for them. in a statement, they said that nrc reports to congress in the last five years show no abnormal occurrences at u.s. nuclear plants, and they continue, america's reactors produce 20% of all our electricity at world class safety levels. thanks to pierre thomas for that report. >>> and just ahead, is the tea party golden boy with a knack for winning elections running for president? we ask him. ♪ [ male announcer ] you like who you are... the man you've become. and you learned something along the way. about the world. and yourself. ♪ this is the age of knowing what you're made of. and knowing how to get things done. so, why would you let something like erectile dysfunction get in your way? isn't it time you talked to your doctor about viagra? 20 million men already have. with every age comes responsibility. ask your doctor if your heart is healthy enough for sex. do not take viagra if you take nitrates for chest pain, as it may cause an unsafe dr

comcast merger stores a significant a stake in n b c we see the nuclear lobbying through the nuclear energy institute and all the other page. putting a full court press on every possible media outlet in addition to members of congress to make sure that nothing happens to affect the growth of nuclear power plants in this country and president obama i would add not only has jeffrey immelt as his jobs and competitiveness of adviser on our white house panel but he took a lot of money from exelon a chicago based nuclear power plant company so we have all kinds of conflicts of interest basically what admiral said many decades ago get the corporate board room out of the news room now we see the effects this. the nuclear crisis has been criticized by the us being attempts to prevent a meltdown appear to be failing but atomic experts point out that the fukushima reactors are designed by america's general electric company about the recent built in flaws. right now a lot of people are wondering who they can point the finger at whether it's general electric who actually designed these nuclear reactors or the ope

you might think of japan in fact no stranger to atomic emergencies among the first major nuclear energy institute there was a testing station in the u.s. state of idaho a steam explosion there back in one sixty one really small amounts of nuclear material but underline the dangers then of the industry then there was the well known three mile island accident in pennsylvania in one hundred seventy nine it's sort of partial core meltdown inside a pressurized water reactor then to japan the first major incident occurred in one thousand nine hundred nine the talk of world processing facility just north of tokyo workers there were attempting to convert an unsafe amount of uranium two people were killed after radiation was well above the acceptable limits there caused a lot of problems at the time japan's most deadly problem to date there was a steam explosion in the nuclear power plant in two thousand and four four people died there and eighteen were seriously injured. because it was simon says an associate professor said tokyo university explains how the design of the fukushima reactor could potential

comcast merger still has a significant a stake in n b c we see the nuclear lobby through the nuclear energy institute and all the other page. putting a full court press on every possible media outlet in addition to members of congress to make sure that nothing happens to affect the growth of nuclear power plants in his country and president obama i would add not only has jeffrey immelt as jobs and competitiveness of advisor on our white house panel but he took a lot of money from exelon a chicago based nuclear power plant company so we have all kinds of conflicts of interest basically what ed said many decades ago get the corporate board room out of the news room now we see the effects this. is on high alert. if they see. taking serious precautions. the concentration of radiation in russia spar is remains normal that's according to russia's main why the agency now there is no immediate rights to be part of russia first of all because of favorable weather conditions a radioactive cloud current he would go straight out into the pacific ocean away from russia that is if the wind doesn't change direction

we see the nuclear lobby through the nuclear energy institute and all the other page shills in his town putting a full court press on every possible media outlet in addition to members of congress to make sure that nothing happens to affect the growth of nuclear power plants in his country and president obama i would add not only has jeffrey immelt as it is jobs and competitiveness of advisor on that white house panel but he took a lot of money from exelon a chicago based nuclear power plant company so basically what admiral said many decades ago get the corporate board room out of the newsroom now we see the effects this. keeping you from. japan you can do so want our facebook account you can join the heated debate share your thoughts on the situation in egypt page also has all the latest videos and news and analysis on this and all of our top stories that is our facebook page and lots of lots of items there to enjoy. some other news here on r.t. and in libya fighting continues as forces loyal to close in on the main rebel stronghold of benghazi. just ten kilometers from the city repor

comcast merger still has a significant a stake in n b c we see the nuclear lobby through the nuclear energy institute and all the other page shills in his town putting a full court press on every possible media outlet in addition to members of congress to make sure that nothing happens to affect the growth of nuclear power plants in this country and president obama i would add not only has jeffrey immelt as it is jobs and competitiveness of advisors on that white house panel but he took a lot of money from exelon a chicago based nuclear power plant company so we have all kinds of conflicts of interest basically what admiral has said many decades ago that get the corporate board room out of the newsroom now we see the effects this. and you can always head over to marty's facebook page to share your thoughts on the tragedy in japan from the battle to isis and tell us what you think about women such as new power lines being brought online probably to allow a more stable water supply and also watch the latest videos and analysis of what's happening right now in japan it's one of our top stories just type

comcast merger still has a significant a stake in n b c we see the nuclear lobby through the nuclear energy institute and all the other page shills in this town putting a full court press on every possible media outlet in addition to members of congress to make sure that nothing happens to affect the growth of nuclear power plants in this country and president obama i would add and not only has jeffrey immelt as jobs and competitiveness of advisor on that white house panel but he took a lot of money from exelon the chicago based nuclear power plant company so basically what ed moreau's said many decades ago that get the corporate boardroom out of the newsroom now we see the effects. well keeping you up to date with events in japan is our facebook account join the heated debate and share your thoughts on the situation going on in japan also have the latest videos and news as you can see here most of analysis and i was on the blogs and spoke of course of our top stories . thanks. to other news now here at sea and in libya fighting continues as forces loyal to colonel gadhafi close in on the main rebel

we see the nuclear lobby through the nuclear energy institute and all the other page shills in his town putting a full court press on every possible media outlet in addition to members of congress to make sure that nothing happens to affect the growth of nuclear power plants in this country and president obama i would add not only has jeffrey immelt as it is jobs and competitiveness of advisors on that white house panel but he took a lot of money from exelon a chicago based nuclear power plant company so basically what admiral has said many decades ago get the corporate board room out of the newsroom now we see the effects this. and i will be keeping you fully up to date with the events in japan on our facebook account you can join the heated debate and share your thoughts on the situation in japan latest stats suggest that at least five thousand five hundred people are dead almost nine thousand missing nearly twenty five hundred injured more details on that and of course our latest videos news blogs and other analysis all of that on our facebook page turns. out and out of some other ne

comcast merger still has a significant a stake in n b c we see the nuclear lobby through the nuclear energy institute and all their other page fills an astounding putting a full court press on every possible media outlet in addition to members of congress to make sure that nothing happens to affect the growth of nuclear power plants in this country and president obama i would add not only has jeffrey immelt as his jobs and competitiveness of adviser on that white house panel buddy he took a lot of money from exelon a chicago based nuclear power plant company so we have all kinds of conflicts of interest basically what admiral said many decades ago get the corporate board room out of the news room now we see the effects of that this even three mile island in one nine hundred seventy nine the corporate media did a fairly good job even as they were being stonewalled by people like governor dick thornburgh of pennsylvania who waited three days before telling pregnant women to get out of the area. who are they now going to and asking for his thoughts on this thornburgh but i mean the these you can always

marvin fertel heads the nuclear energy institute, which represents operator of all 104 nuclear plantsthe u.s. >> there's no questions it's going to impact the perception of the industry. i think that we need to do a really good job as an industry and as government and as a regulator of explaining to the american public why the plants are safe, why we are taking things from japan and making the plants safer if that's necessary. i don't think it's going to affect the plants that are going forward right now. >> reporter: but the u.s. regulators have yet to give westinghouse final design certification for its ap-1000 reactors even as the work continues in georgia and south carolina. they expected to receive it by the end of the summer. congressman edward markey of massachusetts says it needs further testing. he fired off a letter to the nuclear regulatory commission writing "taxpayer dollars should not be spent on reactors that could be at risk of suffering a catastrophic core meltdown in the event of an aircraft strike or a major earthquake." westinghouse insists its new reactor design i

let's take a look at some information from the nuclear energy institute about where the newest nuclear the latest was in june of 1996 in tennessee. prior to that back in 1993 comanche peak number two in texas. before that in 1990 comanche peak one in texas. and obvious that not any development for a long time. take us through the history of that. guest: well, one of the interesting things to bear in mind to those dates is not when those came in but when the regulatory process began. for all of those began in the mid 1970's. when i mentioned earlier about the government-imposed risk and the regulatory environment, it's not a comment on being too much safety regulation. it's a comment of being too inefficient regulation. when it takes that long, literally decades to build a plant, that creates a ton of risk and unpredictability. when you are talking about a multibillion-dollar plant, that's when you get the government-imposed risk that needs to be mitigated at least for the first one or two plants. that's a big problem. host: mike, independent, buffalo, new york. hi, mike. caller: hi. ho

let's take a look at some information from the nuclear energy institute about where the newest nuclear plants are. the latest was in june of 1996 in tennessee. prior to that back in 1993 comanche peak number two in texas. before that in 1990 comanche peak one in texas. and obvious that not any development for a long time. take us through the history of that. guest: well, one of the interesting things to bear in mind to those dates is not when those came in but when the regulatory process began. for all of those began in the mid 1970's. when i mentioned earlier about the government-imposed risk and the regulatory environment, it's not a comment on being too much safety regulation. it's a comment of being too inefficient regulation. when it takes that long, literally decades to build a plant, that creates a ton of risk and unpredictability. when you are talking about a multibillion-dollar plant, that's when you get the government-imposed risk that needs to be mitigated at least for the first one or two plants. that's a big problem. host: mike, independent, buffalo, new york. hi, mike. ca

other speakers included officials from the energy department, the nuclear energy institute and the union of concerned scientists. this is an hour and 45 minutes. >> thank you for being here. this is a briefing. this is not a hearing has such. the reason we try to it as a briefing is so that people wouldn't have to file written testimony 72 hours ahead of time and all of that and things are changing very quickly with regard to the evolving situation that the nuclear power plant. will the committee doesn't have direct oversight on the safety of u.s. nuclear plants we do have to consider how events such as those affect the ability of the nation's nuclear fleet of 104 reactors to supply electricity, this of course the 104 reactors currently account for 20% of the electricity that we use and with the future of nuclear energy will be as part of the nation's energy mix. the events at fukushima are watching unfold on the other side of the world. our knowledge is in complete as we look forward to these experts and forming the committee on what they see occurring at the plant, have impact on the n

. >> reporter: marvin heads the nuclear energy institute, the industry's lobbying organization. >> they the industry since three mile island have prepared us to deal with events just like japan and maybe even worse. >> reporter: three mile island in 1979 was our fukushima. >> as evacuation. please stay indoors with your windows closed. >> reporter: although no one was killed or even injured in the accident at the plant in pennsylvania, with the partial meltdown of the reactor's core came a total meltdown in trust for nuclear power. >> no nux. >> reporter: it took more than 30 years to rebuild. >> no nukes. >> we have short attention spans. as bad memories of three mile island and cost overruns fade in the rear view mirror, we forget about it. >> reporter: tyson slocumb is director of the energy program for the consumer watchdog group public citizen. >> what japan has done is it's very rudely reminded us that nuclear power is not safe. it's not clean. it is not risk-free. >> reporter: for that matter neither is coal. which supplies nearly half our electricity. remember the explosion las

the office of nuclear energy has established a response team to utilize -- with japanese agencies and industry. we were a direct -- directly with the instituteor nuclear power operations and the nuclear energy institute to encourage the formation of an industry led assistance team. they are now leading this industry team deployed to both japan and headquarters in atlanta. hasaddition, secretary tchu reached out to directors and other scientists for technical advice. they are in touch with them on a daily basis. beyond our response to the accident, the research development and deployment programs of my office are highly relevant to feature decisions about potential options for nuclear power. our proposed reactor program will explore designed to offer safety and then adjust to the extensive use. we're also conducting research and development in a high- temperature gas reactor designs. are light water reactors sustainability program is exploring whether the lifetime of operating reactors can be extended with no compromise in safety. we await guidance -- we are conducting research and development into a broad range of options for the nation's fu

energy and natural resources committee looks into the japanese nuclear plant crisis on c-span at 10:00. members will hear from representatives of the nuclear regulatory commission, the nuclear energy institute, and the union of concerned scientists. also at 10 a.m. eastern on c-span3, a senate judiciary committee hearing on civil rights for american muslims. witnesses will include the assistant attorney general of the civil rights division and cardinal theodore mccarek. >> throughout the month of april, we'll feature the top winners of this year's c-span's student cam competition. near 1500 students submitted documentaries on the theme, "washington, d.c. through my lends." watch the winning videos every morning at 6:50 a.m. eastern just before "washington journal." and during the program, meet the students who created them. stream all the winning videos anytime online at studentcam.org. >> over the weekend iowa republican congressman steve king's conservative principles political action committee hosted several possible presidential candidates in panel discussions in des moines, iowa. one panel was on conservatives and the media. this is 40 minutes. [applause] [laughter] >> outstanding. oka

senior vice president and chief nuclear officer at the nuclear energy institute. a the senior scientist for global security at the union of concerned scientists. if you could speak to me for five to eight minutes on what you think of this and where you see us and any steps you think we should be taking. we will start with you. >> thank you, senator. i sit on a committee of officers in the industry. we have conferred the this week and agreed to take action. before i get into that, first to the people of japan, our friends and colleagues there, our thoughts are with them. their actions are heroic. i cannot pretend to understand what it is like to try to do what they are doing in those conditions. it is a heroic effort. our priorities remain providing japan with the support necessary to retain safety at the fukushima reactors. even though the full extent of damages and no, these events represent a challenge to the and -- integrity of our plants. as more is learned, more correctives can be developed. we recommend each -- each of the following actions be taken. includi

have the pronunciation correct from a senior vice president and a nuclear officer with the nuclear energy institute. mr. pietrangelo, did i pronounce your name correctly? thank you. mr. lochbaum, if you would like to proceed with your testimony, then we will have a few questions. >> of the fukushima die ag plans to experienced a station -- the fukushima nuclear plant experienced a blackout. the normal power supply energizes of the equipment needed to operate the plant on a daily basis as well as the emergency culminated in an accident. when i normal power supply is lost, the back of comes on with emergency diesel generators that provide electricity needed to cool the reactor cores. at fukushima, this caused the normal power supply to the cause and the tsunami caused the backup power to be lost. batteries provided it is sufficient power to cool the reactor cores on units one, two, and three. there were no cooling system for the spent fuel cores. some have been damaged by overheating. had they been restored before the batteries were depleted, we would not have been here today. there are lessons that

we will hear from scientists and the chief officer at the nuclear energy institute. and also tomorrow, a hearing examines the protection of civil and human rights for muslim americans. we will hear from the attorney general of the civil rights division and the executive director of advocates. >> throughout the month of april, we will feature the top winners of this year's c-span student cam winners. watch the wedding videos every morning on c-span. just before washington journal. beat the students who created them. you can see the videos online at studentcam.org. >> minority leader mitch mcconnell delivered a speech on the senate floor earlier today when he explained why president obama needs to clearly define the u.s. role in libya operations. he delivers his address today at 7:30 eastern. live coverage here on c-span. senator mcconnell says that the president notified congress of his actions but received no permission. the american naval aviators in the mediterranean wait offshore to fly combat missions against the libyan army asthma reasons wait for the call to go

let's take a look at some information from the nuclear energy institute about where the newest nuclear plants are. the laest was in june of 1996 in tennessee. prior to that back in 1993 comanche peak number two in texas. before that in 1990 comanche peak one in texas. and obvious that not any development for a long time. take us through the history of that. guest: well, one of the interesting things to bear in mind to those dates is not when those came in but when the regulatory process began. for all of those began in the mid 197s. when i mentioned earlier about the government-imposed risk and the regulatory environment, it's not a comment on being too much safety regulation. it's a comment of being too inefficient regulation. when it takes that long, literally decades to build a plant, that creates a ton of sk and unpredictability. when you are talking about a multibillion-dollar plant, that's when you get the government-imposed risk that needs to be mitigated at least for the first one or two plants. that's a big problem. host: mike, independent, buffalo, new york. hi, mike. caller:

this is an experiment that took place in the french atomic energy research institute. the spent nuclear fuel will generate heat to 2500 degrees celsius and the coating outside of the fuel is distorted because of this heat. iodine is now exposed. if something like the experiment happens, and if radiation is dispersed into the air, it would create a very serious situation where contamination occurs in the area around the plant. in order to prevent such a situation from happening, even in high radiation, work had to take place immediately. this is the command post in the sdf chemical academy. we were able to go and to cover the story. one troop member reports on the plant situation says that the reactor number three will go through a water injection operation. it's not just the self-defense force, but also this team was responsible to look at the exposure to radiation of all the team members and also to account the time, the limited time that they were allowed to work in that environment. on the 15th before the water injection operation started, they were up in the air to measure the radia

nuclear fusion. he's the president of the institute for energy and environmental research, which has advocated against nuclear energy, warning of its dangers. gentlemen, thank you both very much for being with us. i'm going to start with you, najmedin meshkati ncalifornia. size up for us right now the situation at the most endangered nuclear plants. >> based on what we hear from your reporters, from itn and also the morning news that i checked, the biggest practical right now is the spent fuel of reactor number 4, which has basically lost all its water and the water has boiled out. and according to the chairman of the u.s. nuclear regulatory commission, yesterday, he also said the same thing. right now, this reactor number 4 spent fuel pool, which doesn't have any containment building, because spent fuel pools are not within the containment building, and the roof on this reactor number 4 has been blown out, which is, i think, the most riskiest and most hazardous element that we have over there. >> woodruff: arjun makhajani what, would you add to that? >> well, you know, each reactor has two elements a

with great minds i'm joined by robert alvarez senior scholar at the institute of policy studies robert is an expert on nuclear energy policy having written for several publications such as science magazine technology review the washington post thanks for being with us robert thank. you so you made a point earlier that provoked a question in my mind you said these are podium rods into which the nuclear fuel was inserted both for the reactor and then later and it's up there in the in the waste ones or the spent fuel ponds could ignite create a fire that would blow the contents of the contain up into the year the ultimately the cesium the most dangerous thing or the the most the largest quantity. zirconium if my memory serves me right ignites around twenty one hundred degrees fahrenheit well what goes on it gets in these pools i mean there was a pool explosion. at the pool in the fukushima daichi unit number four and what happens is that when the fuel is exposed and he. it starts to go it's the thermocline other words it's starts it's a very reactive metal and it starts to interact with the water and it oxidizes sort o

dangers of nuclear energy what new lessons will be learned and what implications they will have for nuclear technology the world nervously waits to see alexey russia's ski party. club from the institute of world economy and international relations says the consequences of the nuclear crisis in japan could affect the world on a global scale. russia has done a great job fighting the. disaster in chernobyl and then fighting the consequences first of all the fallout that happened across some brush regions and russia can offer a lot of expertise in fighting those consequences and also all the russians understand very well the magnitude of the disaster and you know our presence in the situation for all the trashing prime minister vladimir putin immediately offered all the little the systems that would ship them colleagues and even the shipment all for liquid gets the amount of radiation being released now and the amount of radiation that will be released in the coming future is so great that actually global bertha acted in all of the disaster model when only one poll unit was affected you know this really should cover the whole glory so the magnitude of the moon disaster cannot be predicte

nuclear energy what new lessons will be learned and what implications there will have for nuclear technology the world nervously waits to see less erosion of skin r.t. . when you go from the institute of world economy and international relations says the consequences of the nuclear crisis in japan could affect the world on a global scale. russia has done a great job of fighting the. disaster in chernobyl and they're fighting the consequences first of all the fallout that happened across russia regions and russia can offer a lot of expertise in fighting those consequences and also you know russians understand very well the magic of the disaster that you know of as the situation for all the trash in prime minister vladimir putin immediately offered all or available the system stewardship and colleagues and even the shipment of gets the amount of radiation being released now and the amount of radiation that will be released in the coming few she is so great that actually the whole global the fact that you know the disaster chernobyl were only one poll unit was affected you know this really should call the whole globe so the magnitude of the looming disaster that cannot be predicted no

nuclear. >> i was surprised, and i know the energy institute, mr. chairman, but i was surprised of the billions hours of our country generates. japan is blessed with the availability of hydro power. we need to look at natural gas, nuclear, and coal. mr. chairman, thank you for your patience. >> i would like to recognize the gentleman from texas, mr. barton, 45 minister >> thank you, mr. chairman, and thank you mr. secretary for being here. in light of what has happened in japan, i would like to hear what you believe president obama's position is on nuclear power in the united states? does he still support a rebirth of nuclear power and the construction of new plants next could you give us his best reach your best estimate of what his position is? >> i think the president and the administration believes we need to look closely at the events in japan, and we have to apply whatever lessons can and will be learned from what has happened and is happening in japan with those lessons, they would then be applied to look at our current fleet of reactors, to m

institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2011] >> tomorrow government officials talk about the situation at japan's ailing nuclear power plant. live coverage from the senate energy committee at 10:00 eastern here on c-span. over on c-span3, a senate hearing on protecting the civil rights of muslim americans. tom perez is a witness. it also starts at 10:00 a.m. eastern. >> as protests continue in the middle east and is nato starts to take control of military operations in libya, find the latest on the administration officials and the reactions from world leaders from the c-span video library, all searchable on your computer anytime. watch what you want when you want. >> now the implications of what is happening in libya for the u.s. among the panelists, paul wolfowitz. he says the u.s. needs to engage the libyan opposition more. this took place before president obama's speech on libya. from the american enterprise institute, this is about 90 minutes. >> we have a sense at the moment of being in the middle of a great historical world when. we are being taken somewhere, and few of us are certain about where we are going to land. the president is going to address th

institute] [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2011] [inaudible] --[unintelligible] >> coming up next, president obama and senate minority leader mitch mcconnell talk about energy policy. later, a hearing on nuclear plant safety with the head of the nuclear regulatory commission. robert gates and mike mullen come to capitol hill tomorrow to testify about military operations in libya in a pair of congressional hearings. you can watch both of them live beginning with the house armed services committee at 9:00 a.m. eastern. then, they will be at a hearing of the senate armed services committee. both hearings will be on c-span 3 and on our website c-span.org. >> if i can say what i wanted as mayor and the only person who got in trouble was me -- >> stephen goldsmith spend 8 years as mayor of indianapolis. today, he has a different job description. >> i'm here to make the streets cleaner and safer where -- and super -- i am here to make the streets cleaner and safer. >> for more than four decades, the libyan people have been ruled by a tyrant, muammar gaddafi. we have denied his -- he has denied his people's freedom. he has murdered opponents abroad and at home and has terrorized people around the wor