In Nevada, McCain Keeps Quiet on Yucca Mountain

SPARKS, Nev. — At a town hall meeting here today, Sen. John McCain reaffirmed his commitment to building 45 new nuclear power plants by 2030, which he said would produce 700,000 jobs. Missing from today’s event was any mention of one of Nevada’s hot-button issues — whether the state should be the national nuclear-waste repository. A Reno Gazette-Journal poll last year found that 76 percent of Nevada voters oppose the plan to use Yucca Mountain, 80 miles northwest of Las Vegas, as the storage site for the nation’s nuclear waste. According to the poll results, 57 percent said the issue "will be important in making their choice for president."

McCain has voiced support for the Yucca Mountain plan, but in recent visits to Nevada he danced around the issue. That’s not surprising, because Nevada — which President George W. Bush narrowly carried in 2004 — is shaping up into a battleground in November. The electoral handicapping Website FiveThirtyEight.com gives McCain a 60 percent chance of carrying the state. Though Nevada has just five electoral votes, McCain can’t afford to lose states carried by Bush in 2004.

McCain was challenged on a number of issues, including farm subsidies, his participation in the "Gang of 14" to preserve the filibuster and climate change. He certainly was not going to bring up Yucca Mountain, and understandably so. But it was notable that no one in the audience asked about it. Sometimes the issues that aren’t discussed are just as — if not more — significant than those that are.