Nevadans told Edwards has changed Yucca stance

Kirsten Searer

Friday, July 9, 2004 | 8:55 a.m.

Several local Democrats expressed concern Thursday that Sen. John Edwards, the newly minted Democratic running mate, supported a bill that helped pave the way for the Yucca Mountain project in 2002.

But they had different perspectives on Edwards' position at an enthusiastic rally held Thursday in Las Vegas to support the Democratic ticket. More than 100 people attended.

While Edwards voted in favor of the project in 2002, Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., issued a press release this week saying that Edwards now opposes the project.

Aaron Johnson, a stay-at-home dad, said at the rally that he doesn't like the way Edwards voted on Yucca Mountain, but he trusts the judgment of Sen. John Kerry, the presumptive Democratic nominee, who chose Edwards on Tuesday to be his running mate.

"I hope (Edwards) was just ill informed," he said. "I want a good future. I don't want my kids to have glowing water. That is a concern with Edwards, but at some point you have to trust your leader."

John Abbott, a Kerry supporter and Vietnam veteran, said he thinks Edwards is a good choice because of his "charisma." The Yucca Mountain vote isn't as important, he said.

"It was a mistake on his part, but I think he's changed his mind and he's convinced there was not sound science used in the decision," Abbott said.

Pam Coburn, a stay-at-home mother, said she would have preferred Missouri Rep. Dick Gephardt as a running mate, but she appreciates Edwards' emphasis on working class issues.

Yucca Mountain, she said, is not a deciding factor for her in the race.

"Personally for me it's not a big issue," she said. "I'll be happy if it doesn't come here. But it's a lot of money that they've spent on it, and they're going to push it."

Former New Hampshire Gov. Jean Shaheen told the crowd on a conference call that a Kerry administration would stop Yucca Mountain. Kerry, she said, has a long voting record against the project.

"John Edwards has joined him on that, so we are going to make sure that everyone in Nevada knows about that issue," she said to cheers.

Alondra Smith, who operates programs for mentally challenged adults, said her biggest concern in the race is the war, not Yucca Mountain. She predicted that the nuclear waste project won't happen.

"I don't think it's going to come through," she said.