Trump and nuclear energy: future of America's nuclear policy

In a stunning, opinion-poll defying victory, Donald Trump beat Hillary Clinton on 9th November 2016 to clinch the White House. Whilst this stunning victory has reignited populist and anti-establishment political parties around the world, it is important to understand what implications this victory has for the nuclear industry in America - the world's superpower. Whilst Trump's stance on nuclear weapons is quite clear cut and strong, including his failure to rule out using nukes against ISIS as the video below shows, it is not really known how pro-nuclear energy he is.

Trump expressing his view on nuclear weapons through Twitter

If there was one thing which both of the presidential candidates agreed on, it was nuclear energy - both supported it during the debates. However, the fact is that most Americans think otherwise. Analysing a 2008 MIT study, Ansolabehere and Konisky (2009) reported that 55% of Americans would oppose the construction of nuclear plants near their neighbourhood. A more recent survey conducted by polling agency Gallup in 2016 found that a majority of 54% Americans oppose nuclear energy. This public opinion against nuclear energy sits quite uneasy alongside Donald Trump's populist stance in which he claimed to represent the views of ordinary Americans on the campaign trail.

Gallup survey result showing that a majority of Americans oppose nuclear energy 

Donald Trump's own 'America First Energy Plan' states that 'we will get the bureaucracy out of the way of innovation, so we can pursue all forms of energy which includes nuclear'. However, Trump has also favoured the coal industry and has claimed to bring back millions of coal jobs. The real question is: will he favour coal over nuclear? That is the million dollar question in my opinion. So far there are positive signs as Trump's transition team has contacted the Energy Department  for assistance regarding how to keep nuclear reactors operational across America. But knowing Trump's uncertain and often contradictory nature, the future role of nuclear energy in America's energy mix still remains murky. As soon as Donald Trump takes hold of the presidency, he must make his policy more obvious as it could have reverberations across the globe.