Yellowcake uranium is packed in large metal drums for storage and transport. Wyoming is the nation's top uranium-producing state. (IAEA Imagebank / Flickr Creative Commons)
Senate Environment and Public Works Chairman John Barrasso yesterday requested documents related to the 2010 deal granting Russia control over some American uranium.
The Republican from Wyoming — the nation’s top uranium state — is conducting his own investigation into the Obama administration signing off on a Rosatom State Atomic Energy Corp. subsidiary taking control of Uranium One Inc., a Canadian firm with Wyoming operations.
Recent reporting revived the “scandal” that President Trump invokes to deflect criticism about his own Russian connections.
According to The Hill, Obama officials knew at the time of the deal that the FBI was probing a bribery racket that would lead to the 2015 conviction of a Kremlin-linked uranium executive (Greenwire, Oct. 26).
In 2011, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission assured Barrasso, an early critic of the deal, that Uranium One lacked an export license, but The Hill also found that uranium still wound up overseas since the company was “piggybacking” on the license of a shipping company.
In a letter to the NRC and Department of Energy, Barrasso wrote that “a key question” is “whether the Obama administration intentionally misled Congress on uranium exports.”
The letter requests all documents, including communications, about the sale of Uranium One, exports of its uranium and subsequent transfers between foreign countries.
Reprinted from E&E Daily with permission from E&E News. Copyright 2017. E&E provides essential news for energy and environment professionals at www.eenews.net.
To further explain my posts……
Sorry……I do not regularly indulge in this kind of “meaningless” postings………but could not restrain myself in poking a little fun at the obviously out-of-the-mainstream far leaning left/progressive types that write for and frequent this far left leaning website.
I read this website to get a clue about the thinking of the “other” side of American and Wyoming thought.
Please understand that I applaud your effort to get your ideas and options exposed. Hope your realize that far left wing rants have an opposite effect than what you are hoping for……….they alienate regular mainstream Americans.
Dewey………while I am an admirer of some of your work…….I do not understand your post.
Dylan actually took a fairly straightforward news item and posted it.
Of course I realize that words like “straightforward” and “unbiased” are all in the eyes of the beholder………so humor my “uninformed” opinion.
Thanks Robb…….appreciate your backup.
Roger……..can remember meeting you in the Big Horn Bar……..Ten Sleep……..hope to see you again.
Great response, Dewey Vanderhoff; unfortunately statements such as Butler’s clearly demonstrates there is a vast wasteland of intellectual curiosity and political awareness in Wyoming. I would like to add that in July Congress sent a bill to Trump that he reluctantly signed regarding new sanctions against Russia. Trump missed the October 1 deadline to implement these new sanctions. I have repeatedly asked for a response from the good Senator “Johnny who never met a camera he didn’t like” Barrasso as to why he continues to focus his attention on old news rather than the present legislation that his Commander in Chief refuses to implement. The fact that I’ve not received a response further reinforces your assertion that all of this is WAY above their intellectual grade.
Old news. Republicans have been using this conspiracy theory for a few years now. But now it’s needed again as a shiny object to deflect attention from current White House problems.
It’s sad to think that we’ve sunk to this. Though I’m admittedly a Democrat, I can recall enjoying attending dinners for our previous congressmen, even if they were in the “other” party. You went away with the impression that they actually represented Wyoming. In contrast, Barrasso is a party hack doing what he’s told — what state he’s supposed to represent is irrelevant.
I am not sure, but I believe that only 20% of Uranium One is owned by the Russian company. Therefore the “Russians” do not have much control of US production. This clip is from Nov. 2017
The Washington Post reports that it {the 20% figure} is also outdated. It was based on uranium production capacity in 2010, which has since greatly expanded. Uranium One’s share of mining rights is now far less than 20 percent of the U.S. total.
Well said, Dewey Vanderhoff! This is Barasso trying to show WY voters why we should re-elect him. It’s too little too late since he’s done everything in his power to ignore constituents. Personally, I think he blew it when Trump
offered him a higher position inside the beltway of DC, and he didn’t jump on it. When only 2.2% of his campaign funding comes from WY, who’s paying him to ignore us?
C’mon Dewey. Your reply was considerably over the top.
Paul is accurately pointing out that an article about Barrasso and Uranium One has no journalistic room for any sentence involving Trump who had nothing to do with Obama Administration decisions.
“Recent reporting revived the “scandal” that President Trump invokes to deflect criticism about his own Russian connections.” Seriously, what does that sentence have to do with this article?
A flamethrower was used here, but not by Paul.
I am a progressive and have to comment that it is truly amazing how this story would not have been broached had an investigation not been undertaken. I have known for years that Hillary “colluded” with the evil Russians to sell off (20%?) of our uranium to them. Generally this type of story gets buried. Democrats “good”, Republicans “bad”. The perfect con to keep us arguing with ourselves. Does anyone get it yet? Both parties do not represent us!!!!!
Thank you for your continuing excellent, unbiased reporting. Your voice is truly needed in this wilderness of ignorance my lifelong home, Wyoming, has become.
UNBELIEVABLE that you are able to run a story without adding your left wing liberal biases to it.
Paul- it appears your Republican certified rose colored glasses bought from the Fox News.com online store are in fact vermillion red and opaque.
What exactly is your level of expertise in uranium production and regulated marketing ? Did you actually read Barrasso’s 4-page letter with all its bullet poiunts and annotations that could not have possibly been written by him or his staff ( way above their intellectual grade) .
Immediately dissing an article you do not agree with , or even understand , with your Anti-Liberal flamethrower without providing a substantive informed rebuttal is also blatant bias.