Perhaps not since Teddy Roosevelt have we had a president who thinks as big as Donald J. Trump.
From his projection of military power that protects our national interests to his understanding of how a complex economy powers the greatest nation on earth, President Trump has demonstrated a unique appreciation of what America must do to maintain its global leadership.
It is for that reason that he has assumed a quiet but strategic leadership role in advancing our country's pursuit of fusion energy -- the same process that powers the sun and one that could literally provide America with unlimited energy far into the future.
While scientists have been able to create fusion energy in a lab setting, much work still needs to be done to make it commercially viable. For a president who has staked his legacy on American greatness, there is no more important strategic achievement than ensuring that fusion is American-born. Trump has made this pursuit of energy a national priority — not for ideological reasons, but for deeply practical ones.
The geopolitical stakes could not be higher. China has dramatically increased its investment in fusion research, committing billions to state-backed programs with one goal: to beat America in delivering commercial fusion power to their national electrical grid. The country that cracks fusion first will not merely solve its own energy needs — it will hold the keys to powering our world for generations to come. The president knows allowing China to reach that finish line first would represent one of the greatest geopolitical surrenders in American history. It is unthinkable.
Fusion energy brings total energy independence. No OPEC with the Middle East holding us hostage. No hostile regimes choking supply routes for oil and gas. No price shocks at the pump driven by some terrorist group attacking oil tankers. A fusion-powered America would be permanently energy independent.
Trump has much on his plate, but fusion energy is the biggest possible bet he can make on America's future and a legacy that will be chronicled by historians for generations to come. The race is already underway. Our nation needs to win it. Fusion energy must be American-born.
Lawrence Kadish serves on the Board of Governors of Gatestone Institute.
