Chu & Schwarzenegger Advocate Nukes on NOVA

Energy Secretary Physicist Steven Chu (center) today on PBS NOVA:

Q: Could nuclear power help ease the transition to the time when we can rely more on solar and wind? Should California reconsider investing in nuclear power?

Chu: The debate as to whether you want to begin to reinvest in nuclear power generation should be brought back on the table. If you consider the options for base load generation of electricity in California, there's coal, there's gas, and there's nuclear energy. If I compare the downsides of coal versus nuclear, I have to say I'd rather see renewed investment in nuclear power plant generation of electricity in this century than to build more coal plants. There's no question in my mind, that's the lesser of the two evils.

Governor Schwarzenegger on the same show,

Q: What about nuclear power?

Schwarzenegger: I want people to look at nuclear power. Nuclear power was "villainized" for a reason. We had waste that we didn't know what to do with, and other problems. But the technology in the last several decades has improved. In France, they're now using the waste to power the plant.

So I think we can revisit it. I'm not saying build it, because I'm not running the state by myself. I'm saying, "Let us all look at it again with an open mind." We may then say, "It's not worth it. There's new technology. Let's just move on, beyond nuclear." Great.

Let's look at everything, because we always need energy. We also need to explain to people that conservation is where a lot of the action is.

Both interviews conducted last April, now being used to formulate President Obama's energy policy.

If the anti-nuclear community doesn't forcefully rally again a nuclear relapse, the law in California banning new nuke construction will be overturned, paving the way for dozens of new nukes in the nation.

I wonder if all these anti-nuclear musicians at the inaugural will have any effect on Obama's energy plans, which owe Exelon for his Trilateral presidential win.