CHAPTER XIV 



Task Force and Subcommittee on Energy, 1971-74 



When Mike McCormaclc was elected to the House of Representa- 

 tives in 1970 from the apple-rich central third of the State of Wash- 

 ington, he immediately attracted attention as the only scientist to be 

 serving in Congress at that time. His colleagues quickly learned that 

 he had worked for 20 years as a research chemist at the Atomic Energy 

 Commission's Hanford project. They also heard him say over and over 

 again that "nuclear energy is the safest, cleanest, cheapest, most 

 reliable source of energy available, with the least environmental 

 impact of any significant option." Whether or not he was asked, he 

 could quickly launch into an enthusiastic exposition of the virtues of 

 the liquid metal fast breeder reactor. 



Service in both branches of the Washington State Legislature for 

 14 years prior to his election to Congress in 1970 marked McCormack 

 as a political leader with clear-cut goals, remarkable success in getting 

 his own. legislation enacted, and a fiercely competitive character. The 

 Almanac of American Politics states: "Undisputed is the fact that his 

 is an abrasive personality." Yet no committee member has ever risen 

 as fast in authority and responsibility, and few others can point to as 

 long a string of almost single-handed legislative achievements. 



An avid reader, quick thinker, and restless achiever, McCormack 

 has won his reputation in the field of energy. To some detractors, he 

 could seem to be pompous, arrogant, irritating, and pedantic — qualities 

 which his admirers would characterize as self-confident, determined, 

 stimulating, and learned. Teague, who probably did more to short- 

 circuit the seniority system and furnish McCormack with the weapons 

 of power during his first two terms, once told a friend that McCormack 

 had "too much nuclear and not enough Dale Carnegie." 



With a degree in chemistry and a deep interest in basic research 

 in the sciences, McCormack sought appointment in 1971 to the Science 

 Committee. He was also assigned to the Public Works Committee, 

 which helped him obtain the necessary projects to enable him to sur- 

 vive in a traditionally Republican district. He was a member of the 

 Joint Committee on Atomic Energy until the time some of its func- 

 tions were merged into the Science Committee in 1977. 



655 



