Conservatives talk a big game on nuclear power. But it's a crock.

It's pretty simple: Nuclear costs money, and Republicans hate spending it

Nuclear energy
(Image credit: (GraphicaArtis/Corbis))

Conservatives have seemingly had a long-standing love affair with nuclear energy. It was a major plank of John McCain's energy plan during his 2008 run for president, and he continues to support it. But the reality is that Republican support for nuclear energy is about a quarter-inch deep. They aren't willing to pony up the cash for a serious push on nuclear, which means their enthusiasm will always remain merely rhetorical.

Ideologically speaking, nuclear has always been a strange preference for the GOP. Nuclear is dependent on massive government subsidies, which is typically the kiss of death for conservatives (except for when it comes to the oil and gas industry, natch).

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Ryan Cooper

Ryan Cooper is a national correspondent at TheWeek.com. His work has appeared in the Washington Monthly, The New Republic, and the Washington Post.