Podcast Series: “Tom McMillen’s One on One”
Tom speaks with Spencer Abraham, US Secretary of Energy (2001-2005) and former US Senator of Michigan.
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To view the transcript, click here. 7-13-2010 Transcript
I’m hosting a new online podcast series, entitled “Tom McMillen’s One on One” to discuss sports, politics and business combining my life long passions. Having enjoyed a professional career as a basketball player, congressman and businessman, I want to bring to online talk radio my own unique perspective on important issues and invite my friends and colleagues to join in the discussion. I selected Brit Kirwan as my first guest so that we could discuss money and college sports and graduation rates among athletes, which is especially relevant during graduation season. We also talk about the rise in demand for workers in the nuclear field and the need for colleges to offer courses and advanced training. The Knight Commission, which Brit Kirwan is co-chairing, is expected to make its recommendations in June about changes to the college sports system.
Check out the podcast below and let me know what you think in the comments section. I want to make this a forum for many different perspectives, including those of my listeners.
Tom McMillen
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The Attempted Times Square Bombing
Like all Americans, I’ve watched with growing interest and concern the events that have unfolded before our eyes beginning on Saturday with the mysterious car parked in Times Square and leading up to the arrest of an American citizen on Monday night at JFK airport. Luckily for all of us, no one was hurt and I commend the policemen and pedestrians who acted quickly and appropriately. As Lance Orton, the street vendor who first reported the vehicle to the police rightly said about his actions, “It was simple: if you see something, say something.”
This incident underscores the need for all Americans to be vigilant in reporting suspicious activity. Although the event reminds once again how vulnerable we are to terrorist attacks, it is also demonstrates how every one of us plays a role in maintaining our security.
As I watched the media cover this event, I couldn’t help but think of that fateful day in Munich, Germany in 1972 when I was a member of the US Olympic Committee and woke up in the Olympic Village to see that terrorists had stormed the Village and taken the Israeli athletes hostage. Who would have ever thought that a platform built for sport would turn into a platform for terrorism? We can never predict when the next terrorist incident will occur. All we can do is try to be prepared, be watchful, and not hesitate to notify authorities if irregularities are observed. We may not stop all future attacks but if we are vigilant, we will deter many as we did in Times Square.
Tom McMillen
Oil Spill: A Wake Up Call on Energy
The oil spill now jeopardizing the fragile Louisiana coast is yet another example of the risks that carbon-based energy exploration and production present to our communities and the environment. The slick, which is now the size of the nation of Jamaica, will hit the Gulf Coast as early as today. Five thousand barrels of oil a day continue to pump into the Gulf of Mexico with no clear end in sight. Efforts to contain the spill are being undermined by high winds and seas. This could easily end up being the largest environmental disaster in our nation’s history.
According to the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries the spill is jeopardizing over 600 species of animals, a number of which are already at risk—whales, manatees. Soon the news will be filled with heart-wrenching photos of oil–drenched birds and dolphin. Miles and miles of beautiful beaches and coastline will be damaged.
At the same time, the spill threatens Gulf Coast communities. Especially at risk is the local Louisiana seafood industry, made up mostly of family-run businesses—fishermen and oystermen—which are still reeling from the effects of Hurricane Katrina. This spill could be the death not just of an industry but of a way of life along the Coast.
If this spill isn’t enough of a wake up call of the risks of carbon-based energy, don’t forget that just over two weeks ago a mine disaster cost the lives of 29 coal miners. As we face this massive slick on our Gulf Coast, they are still grieving in the small hamlet of Montcoal and across the Mountain State of West Virginia.
Moreover, this is to say nothing of the potential for widespread environmental harm from the long-term effects of global climate change from carbon-based fuels. While clean coal and oil, despite these tragedies, are important to assuring America’s energy independence in the future, we must not ignore the potential for nuclear power.
Environmentally sustainable nuclear energy needs to be a critical, driving component of our national energy strategy. Nuclear power produces no greenhouse gases or air pollutants. We don’t need to despoil our lands, seas or shores to explore for and produce nuclear power. And, the amount of nuclear power we generate is limited solely by the number of plants in operation. It is for these reasons that I voted in favor of expanding nuclear power generation during my time in Congress.
To be sure, we need to make our nuclear plants secure and safe—and the industry has shown a strong commitment to doing just that. Additionally, we need to ensure that the wastes produced from past and future nuclear programs are properly secured and disposed. Homeland Security Capital’s subsidiary, Safety and Ecology Corporation (SEC), is a leader in nuclear material security and disposal. SEC’s track record in nuclear material management and waste disposal demonstrates that we can ensure that the entire lifecycle of nuclear power generation can be done in an environmentally safe and sound manner.
America needs energy—we need it to power our lives, drive our economy, and light our future. However, powering our country doesn’t have to destroy our nation’s lands, seas and shores. It doesn’t mean that we have to put local communities and local jobs—ways of life that stretch back across our history—at risk. We can have a brighter future for our country, while preserving our natural riches for Americans, now and for tomorrow.
Tom McMillen
Homeland Security Capital Corporation Chairman and former Congressman Tom McMillen recently authored an op-ed in The Hill, where he took on the critical issue of childhood obesity and inactivity in the United States.
“Over 25 million American children over the age of six are obese or overweight. Among children ages six to eleven this represents a five-fold increase in just the last 30 years. This youth obesity epidemic is estimated to result in a 300 percent increase in national healthcare costs.”
McMillen, a former Chair of the Presidents Council on Physical Fitness and Sports under President Clinton, noted that the United States needs an strong Council to be effective in the fight against childhood obesity and inactivity. The Council has suffered from a lack of resources in recent years and McMillen has worked with Congressmen Sarbanes and Warner to develop legislation that would form a foundation, similar to the National Park Foundation, that would assist the Council through private-sector funding.
“No federal dollars would be required. This legislation, H.R. 4322 in the House and S. 1275 in the Senate, is currently pending in Congress. Its passage would go a long way to funding a national commitment for youth sports and fitness and would bring much needed resources to fighting this epidemic. ”
Click here to read the entire article.
Securing Our World
As the Nuclear Security Summit proceeds in Washington this week, I applaud President Obama’s commitment to taking the right steps towards making America and the world a safer place by reducing the threat of nuclear weapons. Over 40 world leaders are attending the summit for the purpose of securing all vulnerable nuclear materials and preventing them from falling into the hands of terrorists.
The 2010 Nuclear Posture Review (NPR) outlines the Obama Administration’s approach to promoting the President’s agenda for reducing nuclear dangers, while also advancing broader U.S. security interests. Here’s the link to the full report:
http://www.defense.gov/npr/docs/2010 Nuclear Posture Review Report.pdf
Already, our subsidiary, SEC, is actively engaged in the effort to reduce the threat of nuclear waste and has recently been awarded significant contracts for clean up at the Oak Ridge facilities. Our experience gives me confidence that the strategy that Obama has laid out in the report can actually be accomplished in upcoming years. I expect SEC will actively contribute to efforts by this Administration to ’secure all vulnerable nuclear materials worldwide.’ In fact, while a relatively small company, SEC can be viewed as a case study for what the procedures are for securing U.S. nuclear waste and thereby making Obama’s vision of a safer environment a reality.
Tom McMillen
U.S. Energy Secretary Chu Tours Oak Ridge and DOE Showcases SEC Stimulus Success
In the past few months, I’ve been blogging and tweeting about the importance of government stimulus funds for putting America back to work and for cleaning up the environment. We are excited to announce today, we were awarded contract worth over $16 million, bringing our aggregated total to $37 million in ARRA funded projects for our company.
Last week, US Secretary of Energy Steven Chu toured the Oak Ridge National Laboratory to inspect a range of Recovery Act projects and to see firsthand the progress that has been made as a result of the investments. HOMS’ Safety and Ecology Corp (SEC) was showcased by the Department of Energy in a press release as an example of a small business that has been able to hire more people and clean up the environment thanks to these funds.
Quoting from the DOE website: “The Safety and Ecology Corporation (SEC), based in Knoxville, Tenn., is one of the small businesses to benefit from Recovery Act funding. The company has been awarded four Recovery Act projects totaling $21 million (The four projects totaling $21 million are located in Oak Ridge, TN, which brings the Company’s aggregated total to $37 million in ARRA funded projects.) for the demolition of facilities and cleanup of hazardous materials at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the Y-12 National Security Complex due to stimulus funds.” Secretary Chu was quoted: “Because of the Recovery Act, programs around the country have been able to expand, hire and continue our important cleanup work. These investments have played a key role in helping local economies recover, creating jobs and supporting small businesses in dozens of communities.” The Department of Energy also said, “With the Recovery Act funding, the Department of Energy will be able to reduce the legacy footprint of Cold War-era sites across the country by 40 percent by 2011.”
I am very proud that SEC was highlighted by DOE for work at Oak Ridge.
Unlike post-Cold War cleanups at other nuclear sites, this one will take place directly adjacent to a major research laboratory. The site was originally part of the Manhattan Project beginning in 1943, when American scientists feared that Nazi Germany was developing an atomic bomb. The Manhattan Project was an all out effort by the US to build a nuclear bomb before the Nazis especially as there was concern that the German scientists might already be ahead of the Allies in this area. President Roosevelt was encouraged by Albert Einstein to begin this historic project. In the course of developing an atomic bomb and conducting research and tests, a lot of toxic substances were stored and it is time to clean up and secure these areas.
Currently, ORNL is the Department of Energy’s largest science and energy laboratory in the country and they are doing great work to advance key areas of science including developing the next generation of clean energy, and promoting environmental protection and national security.
Announced today, in a contract worth over $16 million, SEC will demolish 34 facilities at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. These were sites that were historically used in support of reactor area operations and for various laboratory support activities. This project can be considered a model for future clean ups: ORNL’s building stock is diverse, with a mix of new and old buildings whose occupants have widely divergent needs. Goals are to demolish excess facilities, target renovations for energy conservation and obtain Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification, implement 100% advanced electrical metering, and improve indoor air quality.
It is great to be part of this winning team and I send congratulations to everyone who is involved!
Tom McMillen
March Madness Should Make Us Think
March Madness is a great time for college basketball fans to watch some amazing games. Especially after a year of such dramatic political infighting it is good for the country to focus on some regional conflict that can be resolved on the playing field. The variety of colleges in terms of regions, size, student makeup, academic achievement, and physical prowess makes for wonderful drama and reminds me of the excitement and fun I had playing basketball for Maryland. It is also stirring up memories of my time in Congress when along with Senator Bill Bradley and Rep. Ed Towns, I cosponsored the Student Right to Know Act which called for reports on the graduation rates of student-athletes. This was an effort to raise academic performance of student-athletes and make colleges accountable for poor academic performance of their star athletes.
I also served for many years on the Knight Commission which recommended that teams graduate at least 50 percent of their players in order to be eligible for postseason play. The Knight Commission’s goal is to help develop a model of college sports that is sustainable at the top rank of American colleges and universities without compromising their core missions or exploiting the student-athletes who participate in them.
Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, a formidable basketball player himself, has boldly placed himself into this discussion in his article written for ESPN.com this week.
He said, “It is time to boost graduation rates for a number of NCAA tournament basketball teams with poor academic records and indefensible disparities in the grad rates of white and black players…I am proposing that the NCAA adopt an even easier standard for postseason competition — teams that graduate fewer than 40 percent of their players should be ineligible for postseason competition and honors. If a team fails to graduate two out of five players, how serious are the institution and coach about their players’ academic success and preparing their student-athletes for life? Growing up as a kid on the South Side of Chicago who loved basketball, I got to see the best that college sports had to offer. And the worst.”
When I was playing for Maryland, I had to carve out time to hit the books, and even managed to become a Rhodes Scholar after graduating. It wasn’t easy but at the time, there were many people supporting me and allowing me to follow my two passions: sports and academics. We need to foster that spirit and make sure that college players know that we want them to do well academically. There are still too many colleges where the graduation rates are unacceptably low. Some of this is tied to poverty rates and poor preparation before college, but we then need to compensate by insuring that players get extra help with their studies.
Secretary Duncan has raised some very good questions about how we can assure that our college sports are balancing athletics and academics and what we need to do to raise the bar for all of our college athletes. There are a lot of challenges to establish effective penalties for poor academic performance—the graduation rates must be as contemporaneous as possible (last couple years), coaches need to be penalized for poor academic performance as they are for recruiting infractions, and consideration must be given for students who transfer or leave the school in good standing.
Tom McMillen
A recent General Accountability Office (GAO) study pointed to the fact that the US government was not prepared to clean up in the aftermath of a terrorist’s use of a radiological dispersion device or a “dirty bomb’. The study highlighted that our efforts have been focused on responding to such an event (ie. evacuations and treatment) and have paid less attention to recovery such as cleaning up the radioactive contamination to permit people to return to their homes and businesses. The threat of a “dirty bomb’ has a significant psychological aspect as the rampant fear in the aftermath of such an attack could be worse than the attack itself. It is essential for the government to move quickly to diminish the panic and fear that could result from such an attack. That is why I have contacted several of my friends in Congress and have strongly urged that we develop, as the GAO study has recommended, a national recovery strategy as soon as possible. Our company, through our SEC subsidiary, has done extensive work in the UK and we agree with the GAO’s assessment that the UK is taking more proactive measures in developing a recovery strategy for a dirty bomb. We need to be prepared as we cannot allow another Katrina disaster to occur in this country. A dirty bomb can be managed with adequate preparation. Please join me in contacting your members of Congress on this important issue.
Link to the GAO report.
http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d10204.pdf