This is a critical time for the Trump administration, Energy Secretary Rick Perry and our domestic nuclear infrastructure. Our 30-year hiatus in building new reactors coupled with the rise of state-owned competitors abroad has taken a significant toll on the U.S. nuclear industry and has seriously undermined America’s global influence over nonproliferation and other matters.

The pending bankruptcy of America’s flagship nuclear company, Westinghouse Electric, is a canary-in-the-coalmine moment which points to the need to reinvigorate the U.S. nuclear industry.