At long last — an administration that actually believes America can do big things again. One that understands energy independence isn't a myth, a meme, or a climate-cult hallucination, but a real national security priority and an economic necessity. And unlike the previous crowd running the circus in Washington, this administration isn't trying to replace physics with feelings, or swap reliable power for a windmill and a wish.
So it was refreshing — bordering on shocking — to hear Energy Secretary Chris Wright openly acknowledge that the Department of Energy's (DOE) Loan Programs Office will "by far" prioritize financing nuclear power plants moving forward. Wright said, clearly and unapologetically, "The biggest use of those dollars will be for nuclear power plants to get those first plants built," speaking to the American Nuclear Society. Fox Business reported that these federal dollars will be matched three- or four-to-one with low-cost debt financing to accelerate deployment across the nation. In other words: real capital behind real energy.
Think about that. After years of being told we should fear nuclear energy — the cleanest, most reliable baseload power source on earth — we now have a federal government willing to bet big on what actually works. This is the polar opposite of the previous ideological energy commandos who thought California blackouts were a vision of progress rather than a cautionary horror story.
For decades, America has foolishly ceded nuclear leadership to foreign competitors, allowed reactors to age into retirement, and turned itself into a uranium beggar. We voluntarily surrendered strategic control of the fuel that powers the safest and most productive energy technology in human history. Our nation uses tens of millions of pounds of uranium annually, yet we produce barely a fraction domestically. That's not just bad policy — it's reckless national-security malpractice.
But now the tide is turning. And it's turning at exactly the right moment, because technology is.
Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) are no longer a theoretical science-fair model. These compact reactors, producing anywhere from a few dozen to a few hundred megawatts, can be deployed regionally, installed faster, built at lower cost, and operated with high levels of safety and reliability. They're the perfect match for America's coming industrial demand curve: AI data centers, manufacturing revitalization, and modern electrified infrastructure all require dependable power around the clock — not solar-optimism or wind-roulette. DOE calls SMRs a "key component" in America's next-generation energy strategy — and it's right.
Enter Eagle Energy Metals — one of the most consequential emerging energy players in the country, and a company poised to rewrite the American uranium landscape. Eagle controls what it calls the largest mineable, measured, and indicated uranium deposit in the United States, positioned along the Oregon-Nevada border. Its Aurora Uranium Project contains more than 50 million pounds of measured and indicated deposits and has already seen more than 500 drill holes completed. Eagle expects to move into pre-feasibility as early as 2026 — an unusually fast progression by industry standards.
Even better, it's doing what few uranium companies attempt — coupling domestic fuel production with an SMR development strategy. That means the supply and the deployment path live under the same visionary roof. While bureaucrats and politicians hold press conferences, Eagle is building something real. That's the American way.
If this alignment continues — government finally supporting nuclear financing, technology maturing, domestic uranium capacity growing, and private industry poised to scale — then, for the first time in decades, the United States can reclaim true energy dominance.
And let's all take a moment to recognize what a difference that will make. Economic competitiveness depends on energy. Industrial growth depends on energy. Artificial intelligence, commercial infrastructure, transportation, shipping, cloud computing — all depend on energy. We either have it consistently or we fall apart. It really is that simple.
And as a delicious little side note: the environmental activists who spent years screeching about nuclear energy being dangerous have been proven spectacularly wrong. Nuclear is the cleanest large-scale energy source in the world. It emits no carbon. It generates minimal waste. And its safety record, compared to fossil fuels, renewables, or even household appliances, is extraordinary. The tantrum-throwing climate zealots who glued themselves to the pavement demanding we "follow the science" spent the last decade ignoring the science. Typical.
So now we find ourselves at the start of something that feels new — but is actually old-fashioned American excellence. We know how to build. We know how to innovate. We know how to lead. We simply needed leadership willing to say yes instead of "we apologize for existing."
The nuclear renaissance is not abstract anymore. It's here. Eagle is rising. SMRs are real. And the Department of Energy is finally putting its money — our money — into something that will make America stronger rather than weaker.
Nice to finally have an administration that understands and believes we can — and we should.
Because we can. And we will. And when America leads the world again in energy — not because we begged, but because we built — the critics will pretend they were with us the whole time. Let them. We'll be too busy powering the future to care.