About Atomically Speaking, the Nuclear Energy and National Security Coalition's Official Podcast
The Atomically Speaking podcast, hosted by the Nuclear Energy and National Security Coalition (NENSC) (https://nensc.org/), is a forum to bring together leading national security experts who recognize the essential benefits of a strong national nuclear energy enterprise to the continued national security of the United States. Contributors and guests offer a range of opinions and engage in a robust dialogue about topics, trends, and advancements regarding the instrumental role that nuclear energy plays in promoting U.S. national security interests.
ATOMICALLY SPEAKING | From Welder to Secretary of Energy: A Conversation with Dan Brouillette
In this episode, NENSC Co-Chair Daniel Poneman sits down with the Honorable Dan Brouillette, the 15th U.S. Secretary of Energy. Brouillette’s path into the field was anything but conventional — a Louisiana pipeline welder and Army tank commander who rose to lead the U.S. Department of Energy. He explains why the Department is really a national-security agency, and how the Nuclear Fuel Working Group he helped lead exposed America’s dependence on Russian enriched uranium and set the course for rebuilding domestic enrichment and a HALEU supply from essentially zero.
He makes the affirmative case that nuclear is the answer to surging AI-driven electricity demand, argues the United States must win the global reactor-export race against Russia and China, and returns throughout to a single conviction: fixing the fuel cycle is the most urgent task, and the time to do it is now.
20 Oct 2026
ATOMICALLY SPEAKING | The Physicist and the Lawyer: A Conversation with Dr. Richard Meserve
In this episode, NENSC Co-Chair Daniel Poneman sits down with Dr. Richard Meserve — former chairman of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission and one of the rare figures who is both a physicist and a lawyer — for a conversation on what it will actually take to rebuild American nuclear leadership. Meserve traces his unlikely path into the field — a condensed-matter physicist pulled into nuclear by the Three Mile Island accident — and makes the case that the central obstacle to a U.S. comeback is economic: pilot plants will get built, but scaling demands an order book large enough to justify the factories, supply chains, and workforce that real competitiveness requires. He explains why ceding the export market to Russia and China carries genuine national-security costs, how risk-informed regulation and the NRC's global standing can become an American advantage abroad, and why — drawing on his years advising Japan after Fukushima — restoring public and investor confidence matters as much as any technology.
25 Sept 2026
ATOMICALLY SPEAKING | Doomed to Cooperate: A Conversation with Dr. Siegfried "Sig" Hecker
In this episode, NENSC Co-Chair Daniel Poneman sits down with Dr. Siegfried "Sig" Hecker — the fifth director of Los Alamos National Laboratory and one of the world's foremost authorities on plutonium — for a wide-ranging conversation that spans his arc from a European wartime childhood to the helm of America's premier weapons laboratory. Hecker reflects on the pioneering U.S.–Russia lab-to-lab cooperation he later chronicled in Doomed to Cooperate — securing nuclear materials in the closed Soviet weapons cities after the collapse — along with the end of nuclear testing, the birth of science-based stockpile stewardship, and the live debates over resuming testing and recovering the energy value locked in excess plutonium and used fuel. Drawing on seven trips to North Korea and years assessing Iran, he closes on the conviction at the heart of his career: that nuclear technology can do enormous good and catastrophic harm, and that cooperation is the only way to secure the best of it while avoiding the worst.
12 Aug 2026
ATOMICALLY SPEAKING | The Lab That Closes the Loop: A Conversation with SRNL Director Johney Green
In this episode, NENSC Co-Chair Daniel Poneman sits down with Johney Green — Director of Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL) and President and CEO of Battelle Savannah River Alliance — for a conversation on the part of the nuclear enterprise most people never see: what happens to nuclear material after it comes out of a reactor, and why that determines how far the nuclear renaissance can go.
Green explains SRNL's unique niche as the government's deepest bench on tritium, uranium, plutonium, and separations chemistry, untangles excess weapons plutonium from the roughly 94,000 tons of used commercial fuel, and describes what restarting H-Canyon and HB-Line would mean for a domestic advanced-reactor fuel supply and for breaking China's chokehold on critical materials.
He also makes the case for putting AI, automation, and robotics to work on nuclear materials handling, where the hot-cell technology is decades old and the opportunity is enormous.
28 Jul 2026
ATOMICALLY SPEAKING | The Nuclear Congressman: A Conversation with Rep. Chuck Fleischmann
In this episode, NENSC Co-Chair Daniel Poneman sits down with Congressman Chuck Fleischmann — Chairman of the House Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee, one of Capitol Hill's most influential voices on nuclear energy, and, in his spare time, the novelist behind Once Upon an Empire.
Representing the district that's home to Oak Ridge and Y-12, Fleischmann talks about turning nuclear ambition into real deployment, why securing a domestic fuel supply has to be a priority, what it takes to move from one-off demonstrations to a repeatable fleet, and how bipartisan dealmaking still gets things done in a divided Congress. A practical, optimistic look at the appropriations and alliances that will decide whether America regains its nuclear leadership.
14 Jul 2026
ATOMICALLY SPEAKING | Reliability Is National Security: A Conversation with Deputy Secretary of Energy James P. Danly
In this episode, NENSC Co-Chair Daniel Poneman sits down with James P. Danly — Deputy Secretary of Energy, former FERC Commissioner, and Army veteran — for a conversation on why a reliable grid is a national security asset and what it will take to rebuild American nuclear capability from the ground up.
Danly discusses how DOE is implementing the nuclear executive orders, the role of the Reactor Pilot Program in moving first-of-a-kind reactors from paper to operation, why restoring domestic uranium enrichment matters for everything from commercial markets to naval fuel and the deterrent, and how the United States can become the preferred nuclear partner for countries choosing between American technology and offers from Russia and China. It's a direct look at the fuel cycle, the National Labs, and the concrete results that will tell us America has regained its nuclear leadership.
30 Jun 2026
ATOMICALLY SPEAKING | The Physics of American Nuclear Leadership: A Conversation with Congressman Bill Foster
In this episode, NENSC Co-Chair Daniel Poneman sits down with Congressman Bill Foster — particle physicist, former Fermilab scientist, and the only PhD physicist serving in Congress — for a conversation on what technical rigor brings to the biggest questions in nuclear policy. Co-chair of the bipartisan House Advanced Nuclear Caucus, Foster discusses how the politics of nuclear energy have shifted, where the United States can win the global export race against Russia and China, why the national laboratories are a strategic asset worth fully leveraging, and how to think clearly about Iran's nuclear program and the future of the advanced reactor fuel cycle. It's a clear-eyed, science-grounded look at what it will take for America to lead in a new nuclear era.
16 Jun 2026
ATOMICALLY SPEAKING | From Atoms for Peace to the New Nuclear Era: A Conversation with Susan Eisenhower
In this episode, NENSC Co-Chair Daniel Poneman sits down with Susan Eisenhower — national security strategist, acclaimed author of How Ike Led, and granddaughter of President Dwight D. Eisenhower — for a wide-ranging conversation spanning more than seventy years of nuclear history, from her grandfather's landmark Atoms for Peace address to the demands of today's nuclear moment.
Drawing on decades advising on nuclear policy, energy, and U.S.–Russia relations, Eisenhower makes the case for nuclear as the 24/7 answer to surging electricity and AI-driven demand, explains why American leadership and global engagement are central to managing proliferation risks, and offers candid lessons on how the industry can finally tell its story to the public. The result is a clear-eyed look at the strategic vision — and the focus — it will take for the United States to lead the new nuclear era.
21 May 2026
ATOMICALLY SPEAKING | Regulating at Scale & Speed: A Conversation with Ho Nieh, Chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission
In this episode, NENSC Co-Chair Daniel Poneman sits down with Ho Nieh — Chairman of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission — at a defining moment for the agency and for American nuclear energy. The conversation explores how the NRC is implementing the ADVANCE Act and EO 14300, what a more risk-informed regulatory framework means in practice, and why getting this right will determine whether nuclear can be deployed at scale across America.
28 Apr 2026
Two Sides of the Coin: A Conversation with Jay Tilden and Chris Ploch, NENSC’s New Leadership Team
In this episode, NENSC Co-Chair Daniel Poneman sits down with Jay Tilden and Chris Ploch — the Coalition's newly appointed Executive Director and Deputy Director — to explore how DOE's twin missions of national nuclear security and civilian energy must work in concert, why a domestic uranium enrichment capability is both a security and economic imperative, and what listeners can expect from NENSC in the months ahead.
24 Apr 2026
Powering the Comeback: A Conversation with Bryan Hanson, Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Generation Officer at Constellation
In this episode of Atomically Speaking, NENSC Co-Chair, Daniel Poneman sits down with Bryan Hanson to explore the resurgence of nuclear energy in the United States. From restarting Three Mile Island as the Chris Crane Clean Energy Center to extending reactor lifespans and meeting surging demand from AI and electrification, Mr. Hanson shares an inside look at how the nation’s largest nuclear fleet is navigating a rapidly evolving energy landscape and why nuclear power remains critical to both economic growth and national security.
16 Apr 2026
Fueling the Future: A Conversation with Brad Williams, Senior Policy Advisor at the Idaho National Laboratory
In this episode of Atomically Speaking, NENSC Co-Chair Daniel Poneman sits down with Brad Williams, Senior Policy Advisor at the Idaho National Laboratory to explore the evolving landscape of nuclear energy in the United States. From rebuilding the nuclear fuel supply chain to advancing bipartisan legislation, they discuss how policy, innovation, and collaboration are shaping a new era of nuclear deployment both at home and globally.
9 Apr 2026
A Conversation with Dr. Stephen Streiffer, Director of the Oak Ridge National Laboratory
In this episode of Atomically Speaking, NENSC Co-Chair Daniel Poneman sits down with Dr. Stephen Streiffer to discuss the legacy of the Manhattan Project and how it continues to shape the Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s mission today. Dr. Streiffer walks through the history of uranium enrichment and the technologies used over the years, from the gaseous diffusion process and electromagnetic separation to laser isotope separation technologies now being studied for potential commercial energy applications. He also discusses Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s current priorities and the role it plays in supporting the May 2025 White House Executive Orders aimed at restoring U.S. nuclear leadership, including the DOE Genesis Mission — a national initiative to accelerate scientific discovery through the use of artificial intelligence.
2 Apr 2026
From Shipyards to Scale: A Conversation with Jake Jurewicz, CEO and Co-Founder of Blue Energy
In this episode of Atomically Speaking, NENSC Co-Chair Daniel Poneman and Jake Jurewicz, CEO and Co-Founder of Blue Energy, sat down during CERAWeek to talk about what led him to co-found Blue Energy and to discuss Blue Energy’s model aimed at accelerating nuclear energy deployment globally.
26 Mar 2026
Advanced Reactor Technology: A Conversation with Dr. John Wagner, Director of the Idaho National Laboratory
In this episode of Atomically Speaking, NENSC Co-Chair Dan Poneman sits down with Dr. John Wagner to discuss the Idaho National Laboratory’s historic role in Advanced Reactor Technology, his perspective on the future direction of modern Advanced Reactor Technology in the United States, and his thoughts on the safety of nuclear applications in the U.S. and other countries around the world.
18 Mar 2026
Fusion Confusion: A Conversation with Dr. Kim Budil, Director of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
In this episode, NENSC Co-Chair Dan Poneman and Dr. Kim Budil talk about the path that led her to leading the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, reflections on the history of the lab and its prior leaders, and explore the science of fusion, its potential commercial viability, and the role of NIF and fusion testing in ensuring the safety of the U.S. nuclear stockpile.
12 Feb 2026
A Conversation with Dr. Thom Mason: What Does The “Fourth Age” Of The Nuclear Landscape Have In Store?
In this episode, NENSC Co-chair Daniel Poneman and Dr. Thom Mason, Director of the Los Alamos National Laboratory, talk about Dr. Mason’s three decades of experience in the industry, and his leadership of the Laboratory’s national security, science, and mission-delivery portfolio. This active discussion covers prior and recent geopolitical events, the evolution of the nuclear deterrence environment, and the state of the U.S. national security and civilian nuclear energy enterprise.
28 Oct 2025
U.S. – Saudi Nuclear Cooperation: Imperatives for National Security
In this episode, NENSC Co-Chair Dan Poneman convenes two leading experts for a thoughtful conversation regarding ongoing negotiations between the United States and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on a “123 agreement,” a civil nuclear cooperation agreement that provides a framework for peaceful nuclear energy cooperation. Participants include Robert Einhorn, a senior fellow in the Arms Control and Non-Proliferation Initiative and the Strobe Talbott Center for Security, Strategy, and Technology at the Brookings Institution, and Pranay Vaddi, a senior nuclear fellow at the Center for Nuclear Security Policy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
31 Jul 2025
Project Pele and the Future of U.S. Military Energy Resilience: A Discussion with Dr. Jeff Waksman
In this episode, NENSC Co-Chair Dan Poneman sat down for an informative discussion with Dr. Jeff Waksman, Acting Assistant Secretary of the Army for Installations, Energy, and Environment, to discuss the evolving landscape of military energy resilience. Their conversation centered on the critical role of Project Pele, the strategic value of nuclear energy for the U.S. military, the promise of civil-military collaboration in advanced nuclear technologies, and how the pursuit of these innovations by the Department of Defense aligns with broader U.S. ambitions for technological and energy leadership.
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