Kirk cautions Coakley on Cape Wind
Boston Herald|Christine McConville|January 8, 2010
U.S. Sen. Paul Kirk may be backing a fellow Democrat in her quest to capture the seat he now holds, but when it comes to the controversial Cape Wind project, he wants her to slow down. ..."I'd tell her that before a private-energy project is begun in a precious coastal waterway, we've got to make sure all of the (issues) have been fully vetted," Kirk said.
U.S. Sen. Paul Kirk may be backing a fellow Democrat in her quest to capture the seat he now holds, but when it comes to the controversial Cape Wind project, he wants her to slow down. ..."I'd tell her that before a private-energy project is begun in a precious coastal waterway, we've got to make sure all of the (issues) have been fully vetted," Kirk said.
U.S. Sen. Paul Kirk may be backing a fellow Democrat in her quest to capture the seat he now holds, but when it comes to the controversial Cape Wind project, he wants her to slow down.
Kirk, a longtime aide to the late Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, is holding Kennedy's seat on an interim basis.
On Jan. 19, Massachusetts voters will choose between Coakley, now the state's attorney general, and Scott Brown, a Republican state senator.
Yesterday, Kennedy's clan gave their support to Coakley.
But this morning at a Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce gathering, Kirk said when it comes to a private developer's effort to build a wind power plant on Nantucket Sound, he doesn't agree with Coakley, who supports the $1.6 billion renewable energy …
... more [truncated due to possible copyright]U.S. Sen. Paul Kirk may be backing a fellow Democrat in her quest to capture the seat he now holds, but when it comes to the controversial Cape Wind project, he wants her to slow down.
Kirk, a longtime aide to the late Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, is holding Kennedy's seat on an interim basis.
On Jan. 19, Massachusetts voters will choose between Coakley, now the state's attorney general, and Scott Brown, a Republican state senator.
Yesterday, Kennedy's clan gave their support to Coakley.
But this morning at a Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce gathering, Kirk said when it comes to a private developer's effort to build a wind power plant on Nantucket Sound, he doesn't agree with Coakley, who supports the $1.6 billion renewable energy effort.
"I'd tell her that before a private-energy project is begun in a precious coastal waterway, we've got to make sure all of the (issues) have been fully vetted," Kirk said. "We shouldn't be running ahead with a private project before the federal coastal plan is finished. It's like rushing to get a big box retailer built in a town just before it overhauls its zoning code."
State documents show that Cape Wind could take in nearly a half billion dollars in federal subsidies if it begins construction by Dec. 31.
On the issue of health care reform, Kirk said he expects there to be a final vote before President Obama's State of the Union address next month so Brown's vow to hold up the process will be moot. The winner of the Jan. 19 vote won't be sworn in until later.
Also, Kirk said it has been a challenge to step into Kennedy's long-held Senate seat.
"Ninety nine of Sen. Kennedy's colleague's look at his desk as a shrine," he said.
Kirk lamented the loss of civic discussion on national matters but said the most heart-breaking part of his job is seeing the impact of the war on young Americans.
"The toughest part is going to the funeral of these young kids" who died in combat, he said. The last two Massachusetts solders who were killed had "young wives who are pregnant for the first time."