Lewiston Morning Tribune - "Candidate Risch says energy is America's greatest challenge"

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Lewiston Morning Tribune - "Candidate Risch says energy is America's greatest challenge"

The biggest challenge to maintaining America's quality of life in the next few decades will be the cost and availability of energy resources, Idaho Lt. Gov. Jim Risch said during an interview in Lewiston on Monday.

Risch blasted Congress for "sitting on its hands" in recent years and failing to develop a national energy policy. He said it's going to take "a combination of everything" to meet the country's future energy needs, including alternative sources such as nuclear, geothermal and solar power.

"We're going to run out of oil in this century, so we have to change our sources," he said. "If we want to release less carbon into the atmosphere, as we should, then the only way to make up a big chunk of that is with nuclear power. A legitimate energy policy would do something, like shorten the permitting time for new nuclear plants."

Risch, 65, is the Republican nominee for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Larry Craig. Other candidates include Democrat Larry LaRocco, Libertarian Kent Marmon and independents Rex Rammell and Marvin Richardson, who formally changed his name to "Pro-Life."

This is the latest in a long string of campaigns for Risch, whose political career began in the early 1970s with his election as Ada County prosecuting attorney. He subsequently served 22 years in the Idaho Legislature and is in his second term as lieutenant governor. He also served seven months as governor in 2006, after former Gov. Dirk Kempthorne was appointed secretary of the Department of Interior.

Risch described himself as "a free-enterprise kind of guy" who thinks government tax and regulatory policies should be business-friendly.

"That doesn't mean I want to open the door to anything goes," he said. "Government will always play a role. But it's the private sector that makes this country great. I'm for government that works with industry, so businesses can operate and provide jobs and quality of life."

If he could wave a magic wand and get Congress to do one thing, Risch said he would make the Bush tax cuts permanent. He didn't offer any ideas about how to balance the federal budget following such a move, but said the tax cuts were needed because they benefit millions of average Americans.

"Those cuts are scheduled to expire in 2010," he said. "If that happens, 48 million couples will face a $3,000 average tax increase. Millions of elderly and single moms will also have higher taxes. I think that will be just about the time the economy gets back on its feet, so (raising taxes again) would be devastating."

Risch also said he was committed to preserving Social Security and Medicare/Medicaid benefits for current recipients, although he would consider "ratcheting down" benefits for people just entering the workforce.

"I'm not going to go back (to Washington) and start carving on benefits," he said. "I think Social Security and Medicare are contracts the government has with people. But looking to the future, something has to be done. We need to reduce the expectations of people who are just coming into the system."

As majority leader in the Idaho Legislature, Risch said he learned how to build consensus to pass legislation. He thinks that's a skill that would carry over to the federal level.

"These things are personality driven," he said. "If you're combative or polarizing, you aren't going to get anything done. I certainly have no intention to go back and be a bomb-thrower. You have to shop things around and convince people. I have a good understanding how to do that. During the 22 years I was in the Legislature, I was elected to the leadership for all but the first years. I had to bring forward balanced budgets that were good enough to get by Democratic governors and a Democratic minority. This isn't new to me."

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