What’s the Deal With Nukes?

I’ve long wondered just why conservatives are so obsessed with nuclear power.  If nukes had the potential to do away with our climate change problem entirely, then I could see it.  Hooray, no new regulations!  But even cheerleaders for nuclear power don’t suggest that it could produce more than a small fraction of our electricity in the next 20 or 30 years.  So why has it become such a hobbyhorse?

Brad Plumer investigates today and basically says he’s not sure either.  But it seems to boil down to yet another culture war issue: since hippy lefty types are against ’em, all right-thinking patriots are apparently for ’em.  Dreary stuff.  But it is what it is, and if it might serve as the basis for a bipartisan compromise on a climate change bill, maybe it’s worth playing along.  But will it?  Here’s Brad with the bottom line:

There’s little point in acceding to the GOP’s nuclear demands without getting anything in return. [Lamar] Alexander, for one, recently admitted that, even though he’s taking part in talks over new nuclear provisions, nothing will persuade him to support a cap on carbon — which is the crux of any climate bill. “That’s something to watch out for,” grumbles one observer. “Is [the Nuclear Energy Institute] actually going to work to bring new votes to the table?” Perhaps it’s finally time to see just how much this love affair is worth.

I have a guess about that, but I’ll keep quiet about it for now.  There’s no need for puerile cynicism while more optimistic negotiators are still taking a crack at getting a nonnegative answer, after all.  There’ll be plenty of time for that later.