Reliable and affordable energy must overcome bureaucratic resistance.
President Trump’s four executive orders on nuclear energy, issued on May 23, 2025, are blazing a bold path to an energy future where electricity will be more reliable and more economical.
By unleashing advanced nuclear technologies, streamlining regulations, and bolstering the domestic nuclear industry, these orders aim to deliver 400 gigawatts of clean, reliable power by 2050 – a quadrupling of current capacity. This vision promises energy independence, economic prosperity, and national security. Yet, entrenched anti-prosperity bureaucrats, timid politicians, and a misinformed public, swayed by decades of anti-nuclear propaganda, stand ready to obstruct this transformative agenda. America must address these obstacles in order to reclaim its leadership in the field of nuclear energy.
Overhaul of the Nuclear Overseers
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), which was formed after the dismemberment of the Atomic Energy Commission, has long served as a choke point for nuclear progress. The NRC was designed from the get-go to follow the agenda of anti-nuclear advocates, and consequently, it has licensed only two reactors since 1978, stifling innovation. Trump’s orders demand a sweeping overhaul, capping exorbitant NRC fees and mandating licensing decisions within eighteen months. This aggressive reform dismantles barriers, but bureaucrats accustomed to sluggish processes will resist, clinging to technologically outdated risk-averse frameworks.
America’s existing nuclear fleet—light water and pressurized water reactors—boasts the best safety record of any industry in America. Advanced nuclear designs, like small modular reactors, microreactors and Generation IV systems, push safety even further, with designs able to operate reliably even without human intervention. Trump’s orders prioritize the deployment of these advanced designs, targeting five gigawatts of “power uprates” (increasing the electricity output of existing reactors) and ten large new reactors by 2030. Yet, detractors will cry “impossible,” and claim that government staff reductions, as ordered for the NRC, will compromise safety. In reality, NRC had more than enough staff and time to address a legitimate petition involving safety with respect to cooling spent nuclear fuel pools, choosing to instead to deny it. Given this track record, the public interest will be better served by a leaner and more focused regulator that puts the onus of safety and liability squarely on the industry.
Turning Mislabeled “Waste” into Energy to Make Nuclear “Renewable”
Decades of misinformation have mislabeled partially used nuclear fuel as “waste.” In reality, this stockpile, mischaracterized during the Carter administration, holds trillions of dollars in potential energy if converted to electricity. Experts have long argued that this “waste” could provide America with clean, carbon-free electricity for hundreds of years.
The concept of recycling partially used nuclear fuel was recommended to the Biden Administration’s Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm on multiple occasions, yet that administration took no action. Trump’s orders have established a motivated plan to process this partially used fuel for advanced reactors, which will release this vast, hidden taxpayer asset value while reducing foreign dependency. The challenge will be overcoming the government bureaucracy’s previous “build back better” mindset that only wind and solar are “renewable.”
New Nuclear Test Sites and a New Nuclear Workforce
The Department of Energy’s (DOE) nuclear testing, centered at national labs like Idaho National Laboratory, is facing scrutiny for slow resolutions. Trump’s orders demand a cultural shift by establishing test sites outside labs by July 4, 2026, and ensuring reactors are operational within two years. This urgency will spark competition in the electric power sector, breaking monopolistic inertia. Still, the national lab system’s sluggish reputation could hinder progress unless private sector efficiency drives the process.
A robust nuclear workforce is critical. The US “Nuclear Navy” offers a model for rapidly training top-tier nuclear personnel. Trump’s call for private sector-led apprenticeships and education programs mirrors this approach. By empowering industry over government, America can build a top-tier workforce swiftly, fueling reactor deployment and economic growth.
The Crossroads of Energy Security and National Security
Importantly, even more importantly the executive orders bolster national security by designating nuclear-powered AI data centers and military bases as critical infrastructure. By deploying advanced reactors at DOE and Department of Defense (DOD) sites by 2028 and securing twenty new nuclear export agreements, the U.S. can lead globally. However, anti-nuclear advocates, steeped in decades of fearmongering, will push back by attempting to delay export deals and domestic progress.
Trump’s nuclear revolution is not just a policy shift, it’s a call to action. America stands at a crossroads: embrace advanced nuclear power for affordable, abundant energy or succumb to the inertia of bureaucrats and misinformation. Only one of those roads leads to prosperity and energy security, and America must take it.
About the Authors: Tommy Waller and Douglas Ellsworth
Lt. Col. Tommy Waller is the President & CEO of the nonprofit Center for Security Policy. Waller retired from the U.S. Marines after two decades of service in both active duty and the reserves as an Infantry and Expeditionary Ground Reconnaissance Officer with deployments to Afghanistan, Iraq, Africa, and South America and with cross-assigned service to the U.S. Air Force’s Electromagnetic Defense Task Force (EDTF). His formal education includes numerous military schools and colleges, a B. A. in International Relations from Tulane University, and executive education from the Wharton School. In addition to running the Center for Security Policy, he also manages the nationwide bipartisan Secure the Grid Coalition.
Douglas Ellsworth is a Senior Fellow at the Center for Security Policy and serves as the Co-Director of the Center-sponsored Secure the Grid (STG) Coalition — an ad hoc group of policy, energy, and national security experts, legislators, and industry insiders who are dedicated to strengthening the resilience of America’s electrical grid. Through the support of the Center for Security Policy, the STG Coalition aims to raise awareness about the national security threat of grid vulnerability, and encourage the steps needed to neutralize it. The STG Coalition brings a wide variety of expertise in cybersecurity, physical security, public policy and expressly serves the public interest. Mr. Ellsworth’s full bio can be found here.
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