Today, public support for increased government spending is at near record highs. According to the Center for American Progress—recently described as the most influential organization in Washington by Time magazine—some 54% of Americans prefer stimulus infrastructure spending to a tax cut in the new economy. But in the rush to spend on a green energy package that will hopefully power America out of this economic slump, a key player has been left behind: nuclear.

It's not hard to see why nuclear hasn't exactly been a poster child of the sustainability movement. After John McCain hailed it as a simple solution to the nation's then-evident energy crisis, I gave a brief rundown of the large challenges facing nuclear energy: it requires an enormous initial investment, runs on a rare fuel that is harmful to extract, requires constant vigilance against malfunction and sabotage, produces a toxic and radioactive waste product, and has been responsible for one of the most striking environmental disasters of all time.

But nuclear provides some unmistakable benefits, as well. It provides energy on a massive scale, and requires little in the way of space to do so. The average nuclear power plant delivers 3,600 kilowatts per acre, compared with 12 kilowatts per acre for typical solar installations and 5 per acre for wind installations. And unlike many renewables, in ideal conditions, nuclear power can provide round the clock generation, regardless of environmental conditions.

Unlike other traditional energy sources, nuclear reactors produce no direct carbon emissions. The large plumes of steam emanating from the distinctive cooling towers carry no sulfur, nitrates or mercury, and the cost of fuel is relatively stable compared with the recent fluctuations in the petrochemical market. And as the job market worsens, the expense of hiring the over 2000 workers required to build and maintain a nuclear facility may become an asset.

Perhaps most importantly of all, though, nuclear power plants are more or less amenable to folks from all slices of the political spectrum. President -elect Obama and his new DOE Secretary Steven Chu both agree with Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell that there's a place for nuclear in our energy arsenal. More than 80% of the nation views nuclear power as a valuable energy option, and while most environmentalists would rather see spending on renewable energy sources, as long as climate change remains a pre-eminent environmental threat, a significant number will continue to see nuclear power as the lesser of two evils.

So, imperfections aside, the United States' nuclear power industry is deserving of a bailout. No nuclear power plants have been constructed since 1979, and many facilities are within a few years of their scheduled shut down date. The impacts of these closures may have ripples far beyond the energy industry, as nuclear plants are an important source of radioactive materials in industrial and medical applications. With the government more ready to spend than ever, it would be shortsighted to leave the worthwhile expense of nuclear power dangling in the wind.

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