Buckley Nuclear Power Exposes Colorado’s Energy Hypocrisy

I don’t know, but I’ve been told — nuclear power is mighty bold.

Especially when Colorado Democrats discover it standing outside Buckley Space Force Base, squinting into the cameras like they just personally invented reliable electricity between a committee hearing and lunch.

Sentinel Colorado reports that Aurora Democratic Rep. Jason Crow, Sens. Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper, Lt. Gov. Dianne Primavera, Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman, and base leaders met for the annual “Future of Buckley” review. The big topics: a planned “micro” nuclear reactor for Buckley Space Force Base, military housing and health care, and whether the Colorado National Guard is ready for what could be a nasty wildfire season after one of the driest, warmest winters on record.

That is all real. Also real: Buckley is apparently one of the most power-hungry installations in the military, and federal officials want to install a small modular nuclear micro-reactor through the Advanced Nuclear Power for Installations program. The reactor, being developed by Radiant Industries out of El Segundo, California, is described by experts as roughly the size of a truck-bed trailer and could be operational around 2028.

Crow said the quiet part with a microphone attached: Buckley eats so much power that taking it off the civilian grid could help Colorado ratepayers by relieving that burden.

Well, holy megawatt, Batman.

So electricity demand matters? Grid capacity matters? Reliable power matters? Giant institutions consuming huge amounts of energy can drive costs for normal people? Amazing. Somebody should tell the Colorado ruling class before they finish stapling an extension cord to every car, furnace, stove, water heater, lawn mower, and moral superiority machine from Aurora to Aspen.

This is the part where the political priesthood suddenly becomes very practical. When regular Coloradans say they need affordable, reliable energy, they get a sermon about sacrifice, transition, resilience, and probably a downloadable PDF from some nonprofit with a mountain logo. But when Buckley Space Force Base needs juice for missile warning, space surveillance, intelligence missions, communications projects, and every other national-security thing that sounds like it was pulled from a Tom Clancy novel, suddenly the answer is not vibes. It is nuclear power.

Funny how that works.

Nobody is saying Buckley should not have it. Buckley matters. It employs thousands of active-duty service members, Guardsmen, Reservists, civilians, and contractors. Officials say it pumped about $2.4 billion into the local economy last year. If any place needs dependable power, it is the base helping watch the sky for incoming nightmares.

But that is exactly the point. The grown-up answer to serious energy demand is not a prayer circle around a bike lane. It is dense, reliable, always-on power that does not faint every time the weather gets moody.

And now the same political class that loves to bury normal Coloradans under fees, regulations, mandates, studies, stakeholder meetings, and climate theater is standing at Buckley nodding along while nuclear gets treated like the sensible adult in the room.

Crow says they will conduct oversight into safety and effectiveness, including sending staff to the manufacturing facility. Good. Do that. Nuclear power deserves serious oversight, not blind cheerleading. But spare us the act where reliable energy is scary and complicated for households, businesses, factories, and ratepayers — then magically becomes visionary when the federal government needs it behind a fence.

Meanwhile, they also talked wildfire readiness, because Colorado now lives in the fun little policy blender where the state is dry, expensive, overcrowded, underpowered, and somehow always one task force away from competence.

Normal Coloradans already know the grid matters because they pay the damn bills. They know wildfire season matters because smoke does not care about press releases. They know housing and affordability matter because service members and civilians alike are trying to survive Front Range prices that look like they were generated by a drunk slot machine.

So welcome to reality, everybody. Buckley needs nuclear power because fantasy energy policy eventually runs into actual electricity demand — and unlike politicians, satellites do not run on bullshit.

Source: Sentinel Colorado