The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, April 29, 2002, Page 2, Image 2
Republicans say plutonium bill is ready
BY JEFFREY COLLINS
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
COLUMBIA, S.C. - U S. Rep
Lindsey Graham says all he
needs is Gov. Jim Hodges ap
proval and he can get a deal
through Congress nearly guar
anteeing plutonium shipped from
Colorado won’t stay in the state
indefinitely. (
A spokesman for the
Democratic governor says he ap
preciates the bipartisan effort led
by the Republican representative.
But Jay Reiff says some details
still must be worked out with the
U.S. Energy Department before
Hodges supports Graham’s bill.
The legislation would fine the
federal government $1 million a
day starting in 2011 if at least 1
ton of the weapons-grade pluto
nium has not been made into fuel
for nuclear reactors at the
Savannah River Site. The gov
ernment would have to move the
plutonium or speed up the con
version to stop the fines. The
penalties would be capped at $100
million a year.
The fines would start again in
Jan. 1,2017 if all the plutonium is
not converted. The penalties
would continue at the same rate
and with the same cap until all
the nuclear material is out of the
state.
Graham, who was flanked by
fellow Republicans Lt. Gov. Bob
Peeler and South Carolina House
Speaker David Wilkins, sahi
Saturday that he felt that fellow
state delegation member and
Democrat U.S. Rep John Spratt
would support such a bill.
The Energy Department also
likes the bill, spokesman Joe
Davis said. “We hope they can get
the governor to sign on to it,“ he
said.
All the bipartisanship is fine,
Reiff said, but the governor still
isn’t completely ready to sign off
on the proposal.
Hodges, who has vowed to lay
down in the streets to stop pluto
nium from entering South
Carolina, wants nothing shipped
from Rocky Flats facility in
Colorado until the agreement
passes Congress and is signed by
the president.
Graham said with the sup
port of Sen. Strom Thurmond, R
S.C., that could happen by the end
of May, but Reiff said he expects it
to be closer to the middle of the
summer.
The Energy Department
says it can start shipping the
plutonium on May 15, although
Graham said he expects the
agency will delay shipments by
at least a week if his deal moves
forward.
Hodges also disagrees with
when the fines should start, and
he wants better assurances the
deal can pass through the Senate,
Reiff said.
“This is not a done deal, but
we’ve made progress," Reiff said.
Graham said he had been
meeting with the governor and
other Republican and Democratic
leaders throughout the weekend
trying to hammer out the agree
ment.
Graham, who is running for
the U.S. Senate seat vacated by
the retiring Thurmond, said
Hodges was right in his stance
in wanting a binding agreement
to guarantee the plutonium
would leave the state in some
form.
Peeler, who is running for
the GOP gubernatorial nomina
tion to face Hodges in November,
and Wilkins agreed and urged
the governor to take the last step
and sign on to the compromise.
“Political grandstanding
doesn’t get anything done, but po
litical leadership does," Wilkins
said.
Hodges had state troopers
and transport police practice
blocking a tractor trailer trying
to enter SRS on Monday.
Firing
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
Neither McGreevy nor Fink
would comment.
Winslow’s girlfriend, third
year French student Jamie
Martin, was the other student
who ordered a drink. She isn’t a
Housing Department employee.
“None of the other partici
pants expressed any reason why
(Tom) should not get his drink,”
Martin said in a written state
ment. “No prior concerns were
expressed concerning any con
sumption of alcohol, and the
problem was not clearly ad
dressed at the time of the inci
dent.
“Tom was not driving any
where, and in no way abused or
disregarded any instruction or
authority.”
First-year accounting student
Jason Drach lives on Winslow’s
hall and described him as a
great RA.
“Without Tom, I don’t think
I would have made it this year,”
f
Drach said. “He’s always there
for everyone. He can really con
nect with his residents.”
Drach said Winslow con
stantly encourages his residents
to get involved on campus.
Winslow said he thinks a
more appropriate punishment
would have been to write a let
ter of apology to his residents
and those involved.
“I’ve never been in trouble
with Housing before,” Winslow
said. “This just seems like a big
step.”
Winslow, who will graduate
in May, plans to attend law
school this fall. He said he had
planned to continue as an RA if
he were to attend USC.
First-year student George
Raad is also one of Winslow’s
residents. ,
“If this is a mistake, it’s the
first one I’ve seen Tom make as
an RA,” Raad said. “I think he
deserves a second chance.”
Comments on this story?E-mail
gamecockudesk@hotmail.com
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