Nuclear Power=Energy Security

In his speech to Congress on February 24, 2009, the president expressed dismay at the fact that while America had invented solar technology, it had fallen behind Germany and Japan in producing it. He likewise complained that while new plug-in hybrid vehicles might one day roll off American assembly lines, they would be run on batteries made in Korea. Noticeably absent from his discussion of energy advances made in other lands was this parallel: America invented nuclear power, but while the rest of the world is aggressively moving forward to use it as a means of combating the growing demand for electric power and to reduce carbon emissions, we haven't built a nuclear reactor in decades. This is most unfortunate because it is simply impossible to reduce carbon emissions or increase our energy security without nuclear energy playing a lead role.

In recent years, as America has been mired in a standoff on nuclear energy, other countries have taken the lead in its advancement. In France, nuclear energy accounts for nearly 80 percent of the nation's power supply. Nuclear plants also account for a substantial percentage of power generation in places like Russia, Japan, and Korea. Meanwhile, the governments of China and India have undertaken new nuclear efforts, and a vast number of other nations are actively contemplating either launching or relaunching nuclear energy programs at this time, including the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, Canada, and even Italy.