IRAQI URANIUM NOW IN U.S. LABS

The good news: U.S. troops and scientists have taken a heap of radioactive material out of insecure locations in Iraq. The bad news: they may have brought the stuff to insecure locations here in America.

"In a secret operation, the United States last month removed from Iraq nearly two tons of uranium and hundreds of highly radioactive items that could have been used in a so-called dirty bomb," the AP reports.

"The nuclear material was secured from Iraq's former nuclear research facility and airlifted out of the country to an undisclosed Energy Department laboratory for further analysis, the department said in a statement."

That could mean that the material is now at the famously ill-defended Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, if recent history is any guide. The remnants of Libya's aborted nuclear program were brought there, not long ago -- an odd choice, considering Y-12's guards have been cheating on security drills for twenty years or more, according to a Congressional report. During one test, simulated terrorists took a mock, 44-pound uranium package, and "got outside of the fences in 38 seconds," according to a former Y-12 security analyst.

"1.77 metric tons of low-enriched uranium and roughly 1000 highly radioactive sources from the former Iraq nuclear research facility," were packaged up by 20 experts from the Energy Department's labs, and taken here, according to the Department.

Much of the material "was in powdered form, which is easily dispersed," Energy Department spokesman Bryan Wilkes tells the AP.

THERE'S MORE: Two National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) contractors violated federal guidelines when they brought handguns on board an NNSA aircraft without obtaining proper authorization, according to a report from the Energy Department's Inspector General. That's bad. But what's really wrong is that, "contrary to representations made to us by officials in 2002... NNSA had not developed and implemented an effective aircraft security program ."

AND MORE: Tennessee congressman Zach Wamp says that the Energy Department's technicians came from Oak Ridge National Laboratory, next door to Y-12.

''Frankly, Oak Ridge has played a key role here,'' Wamp tells the AP.

''At a classified level, we have been aware of what role Oak Ridge plays,'' he continues. ''And it is a wonderful, wonderful public service for our highly skilled nuclear technicians to be engaged in securing this material and bringing it back to the United States.''

AND MORE: The U.S. government wants to bring a big chunk of Russia's weapons-grade uranium -- 5500 pounds worth -- to Y-12, as well. But an argument over money is holding up the deal, for now.