Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev. once again declared the Yucca Mountain/Freddy Kruger Project dead this week.

"For more than two decades, some have persistently tried to turn a piece of the magnificent Nevada desert just outside of Las Vegas into a dumping ground for dangerous nuclear waste," Reid said. "I am proud to say that today, with the release of President Obama's budget, that idea is dead."

"Just outside of Las Vegas"? Reid makes it sound like the repository is going to be built in downtown Henderson. In fact, Yucca is a full two-hour drive from Las Vegas. That's about half-way to Disneyland in the middle of nowhere. "Just outside of Las Vegas." What a crock.

And "a piece of the magnificent Nevada desert"?

First of all, it's a desert, which, by definition, means it's ... a desert. Not exactly Iowa corn fields or the rainforest.

Secondly, the underground project is so far off the Highway 93/95 beatin' path that no one will ever see it unless they're taking a tour of the place.

And lastly, this "dumping ground for dangerous nuclear waste" is located right next to the Nuclear Test Site, the place where the United States government blows up nuclear weapons underground to make sure they work. So in reality, "storing dangerous nuclear waste" is pretty much the ONLY thing Yucca Mountain can be used for -- other than building a nuclear waste recycling facility and an international energy research center.

Facts aside, is Yucca dead as Harry Reid declared? Or is this just more political posturing and bloviating by a man up for re-election next year? To find out, let's take a look at Page 68 of President Obama's budget, the page Reid cites as proof that Yucca's dead.

"The Administration proposes to eliminate the Yucca Mountain repository program. The Budget provides $196.8 million for the Department of Energy (DOE) to explore alternatives for nuclear waste disposal and to continue participation in the repository license proceeding before the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

"This proposal implements the Administration's decision to terminate the Yucca Mountain program while developing disposal alternatives. All funding for development of the facility would be eliminated, such as further land acquisition, transportation access, and additional engineering."

Note that Obama's budget only "proposes" to eliminate Yucca Mountain. Remember, the president proposes; the Congress disposes. And as is often pointed out, Yucca is the law of the land and won't truly be "dead" unless Congress changes the law.

So while Obama's budget is a serious effort to bleed the project dry, unless Congress repeals the Yucca Mountain law, Yucca Mountain will remain on life support and can probably survive in a vegetative state until long after Harry Reid and Barack Obama have left the national political stage.

But even at $196.8 million, that's far from bleeding the project dry or terminating it.

Note that the money budgeted for Yucca ends "further land acquisition, transportation access, and additional engineering." Further. In other words, the project won't move forward. Then again, there's no money being proposed to shut it down either. Details, details.

In fact, the $196.8 million is more than enough to continue funding the only thing necessary to keep Yucca alive right now -- the licensing process. You know, the process by which the Nuclear Regulatory Commission will evaluate the Department of Energy's application to open and operate Yucca Mountain based on the science and technology of the project, not the politics of it. And that process, expected to take at least four years, is fully funded by Obama's budget.

If Obama truly wanted to "terminate" Yucca Mountain, he'd yank the license application. But the minute he does that, he'll have a war on his hands with Congress. And he knows it.

So yes, the Yucca Mountain project is on life support, but it ain't dead yet. Just look at Page 68 of President Barack Obama's budget.

Chuck Muth is president of Citizen Outreach, a non-profit public policy grassroots advocacy organization. He may be reached at chuck@citizenoutreach.com.