Thomas English
Contributor
President Joe Biden signed an executive order Tuesday, just six days before he leaves office, that aims to bolster the United States’ artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure and “accelerate the clean energy transition.”
The executive order directs the Department of Defense (DOD) and the Department of Energy (DOE) to lease federal property to the private sector to build “gigawatt-scale” AI data centers while enlisting the Department of the Interior to “identify lands it manages that are suitable for clean energy.” The move is the latest in a series of last-minute advances for the president’s green energy agenda, which includes a newly-announced crackdown for future offshore oil and gas drilling.
“This Executive Order will direct the Department of Defense and the Department of Energy to lease federal sites where the private sector can build frontier AI infrastructure at speed and scale,” the official White House statement reads. “These efforts are designed to accelerate the clean energy transition in a way that is responsible and respectful to local communities, and in a way that does not impose any new costs on American families.”
I know many are skeptical about the need for clean energy.
Some don’t believe climate change is real – they’re wrong. The clean energy transition is already happening, and the United States must win.
This will shape the future of the global economy and the planet.
— President Biden (@POTUS) January 14, 2025
The order defines “clean energy generation resources” as geothermal, nuclear fission and fusion, solar, wind, hydroelectric, hydrokinetic and marine energy — or any energy source that produces “few or no emissions of carbon dioxide.” (RELATED: Trump Reportedly Mulling Exec Order To Shield Americans’ Gas Stoves From Bureaucrats)
The energy consumed while training large language models (LLMs) has long been a concern for climate activists, who point out that AI and cryptocurrency data centers accounted for nearly 2% of global energy consumption in 2022 — a figure that could double by 2026, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).
The White House also called the development of U.S. AI infrastructure a “national security imperative” in the statement, emphasizing the need to prevent adversaries from harnessing the “powerful systems.”
“Domestic data centers for training and operating powerful AI models will help the United States facilitate AI’s safe and secure development, harness AI in service of national security, and prevent adversaries from accessing powerful systems to the detriment of our military and national-security,” the statement claims.
The administration added that the U.S. should not “sacrifice critical environmental standards and our shared efforts to protect clean air and clean water” in the effort to maintain AI dominance. Biden also announced Monday a new restriction on advanced semiconductor exports, which aims to prevent countries like China from training advanced LLMs.
The executive order is another eleventh-hour move in what appears to be an effort to stymy President-elect Donald Trump’s energy agenda, which is expected to include a vast expansion of oil and gas drilling on federal lands and waters. Biden announced a ban Monday for future offshore oil and gas activity across 625 million acres of the outer continental shelf, citing a law that could prevent a successive administration from easily reversing the policy.
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It’s basically money laundering between the dnc and political donors.
Given how slowly the federal swamp usually moves, there will be little action on either of these EOs before Trump has a chance to cancel them.
If his team is halfway competent, they will have dozens, if not hundreds of these EOs already written, needing only Trump’s signature as soon as the inauguration is over.
100 on the first day is the word.
Make that 101, now. !
And, on the next day, Trump said he’s going to issue a statement on UAPs- for the few of you here following that obscure topic. 🙂
UAPs are almost certainly man made advanced tech . The US government is quite happy to conceal black projects as UAP / UFO , a classic being the Rendlsham Forest UFO which was supposed to be black and triangular and coincided with the arrival of the F117a which was ultra top secret at the time . It was all just a deep state cover up and the more it got spun the more the story evolved and got confused.
I had a great view of a UAP- part of the Hudson Valley “flap” in 1983. It was V shaped, huge, with unblinking white lights under each “wing”. I doubt it was man made- but I could be wrong. It made zero sound. The image attached is from a Joe Rogan video- showing what somebody saw during the Phoenix Lights flap in the ’90s. That item is exactly what I saw, though not that low to the ground- maybe twice as high.
forgot to add the image- added here
EO’s are an affront to democracy, especially in republics where citizens are supposed to elect representatives to determine how to achieve best governance. Presidents should be looking at possibly issuing EO’s at a rate of about one per decade, rather than dozens on day 1 and several per month thereafter. Just makes Presidents dictators over everyday issues instead of responsive to congressional votes.
Omnibus bills suck too.
You don’t need dozens of EOs on day 1 if there aren’t dozens on days -30 to -1.
EOs were intended to instruct the executive branch bureaucracy (which the president is in charge of) how to interpret certain laws and issue instructions regarding priorities and other such guidelines.
They have gotten out of control because the laws are so poorly written that they are open to a wide range of interpretations.
All of the EOs that Trump’s team says he is going to sign, rescind EOs that Biden has signed.
Trump will undo that on day 1. Even with his cognitive impairment Biden ‘knows’ it is just virtue signaling, as nothing could be done before next Monday Jan 20.
The bigger blunder is Biden ‘thinking’ advanced AI data centers could ever be run on intermittent ‘clean’ renewables. Maybe he should issue an accompanying EO banning renewable intermittency. Would be just as effective.
Biden ‘knows 🤣
He’ll plead diminished responsibility and walk away scot-free
Force big tech to use wind and solar while the general population has to use them.
Story Tip
Atlantic overturning inferred from air-sea heat fluxes indicates no decline since the 1960s
The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) is crucial for global ocean carbon and heat uptake, and controls the climate around the North Atlantic. Despite its importance, quantifying the AMOC’s past changes and assessing its vulnerability to climate change remains highly uncertain. Understanding past AMOC changes has relied on proxies, most notably sea surface temperature anomalies over the subpolar North Atlantic. Here, we use 24 Earth System Models from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) to demonstrate that these temperature anomalies cannot robustly reconstruct the AMOC. Instead, we find that air-sea heat flux anomalies north of any given latitude in the North Atlantic between 26.5°N and 50°N are tightly linked to the AMOC anomaly at that latitude on decadal and centennial timescales. On these timescales, air-sea heat flux anomalies are strongly linked to AMOC-driven northward heat flux anomalies through the conservation of energy. On annual timescales, however, air-sea heat flux anomalies are mostly altered by atmospheric variability and less by AMOC anomalies. Based on the here identified relationship and observation-based estimates of the past air-sea heat flux in the North Atlantic from reanalysis products, the decadal averaged AMOC at 26.5°N has not weakened from 1963 to 2017 although substantial variability exists at all latitudes.
“The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) is crucial for global ocean carbon and heat uptake, and controls the climate around the North Atlantic.”
controls?
Not denying AMOC exists, merely thinking it’s a name given to process with effects that correlate with the effects of other processes. I don’t like how the word “controls” is used.
Control in form of effect, influence, impact…?
Control as in stabilize within a tolerable range due to thermal management using heat sinks. Much like the northern European heat pumps employ.
Here, we use 24 Earth System Models from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) to demonstrate that these temperature anomalies cannot robustly reconstruct the AMOC. Instead, we find that air-sea heat flux anomalies north of any given latitude in the North Atlantic between 26.5°N and 50°N are tightly linked to the AMOC anomaly at that latitude on decadal and centennial timescales.
So the models do not agree with the limited data available – therefore the data is wrong?
As usual. SMH.
“[we] demonstrate that these temperature anomalies cannot robustly reconstruct the AMOC“. Aren’t they actually demonstrating that the climate models cannot represent the AMOC?
We can blame JB, but it does not seem likely he’s driving
What is missing is an order that AI data centers must operate solely on wind and solar.
The clean energy transition is already happening, and the United States must win….
The US may win the energy transition battle, but end up losing the energy security war.
‘US must win’. Biden is delusional.
China controls REOs two ways. World’s largest bastnesite ore reserve, and no environmental controls on processing. It controls indirectly the vast majority of gallium and germanium. It controls the majority of auto scale LiIon because it processes the majority of precursor ores—same lax environmental reasons. It controls almost all of polysilicon solar, because it uses cheap coal fired electricity to produce the poly and cheap Uighur slave labor to produce the solar arrays.
The Chicoms pay the Biden’s so they won’t look into such matters.
build “gigawatt-scale” AI data centers
Biden expects those centers to generate gigawatts.
Plus installing lots of intermittent generation that DOESN’T WORK more often than it does is not being a “winner” but A LOSER.
Making your electric grid LESS RELIABLE and MORE EXPENSIVE is only a “win” in the mind of a DELUDED IDIOT.
OH WAIT!
“ the need for clean energy.”
So wind and solar are out of the picture.
Both these are massively polluting and environmentally damaging at every stage from mining,
manufacturing, which uses particularly toxic chemicals…
installation, which destroys trees, farmland and pristine environments…
in use, they destroy avian wildlife and can cause problems for any animal near them…
to their end of life, which requires massive amounts of land fill and can leach toxic chemicals for centuries.
Wind and Solar ARE NOT CLEAN.
This ^
Installation, which destroys trees, farmland, and pristine environments…. ON A MASSIVE SCALE.
Fixed it.
I think the article gets the president’s name wrong. Shouldn’t it be President Obama. The founding fathers knew what they were doing with a two term limit, but maybe they never expected a cardboard president.
The founding fathers did not write the 22 Amendment
The should have imposed term limits on the representatives and senators.
So you don’t wont to allow me to vote for the representative or senator I prefer?
I think arbitrary term limits are unconstitutional. I’m against them.
If Jim Inhofe were still alive and running for office, I would vote for him. Climate Alarmists hated Jim Inhofe because he exposed their climate change lies. It didn’t matter that he was old, he was correct, and wasn’t afraid to say so. Those are the kind of people I want to vote for, and their age makes no difference to me. All that matters is if they can do the job.
Term limits take away my choices. I’m against them.
I agree in principle, Tom – voting is the ultimate term limit. But “the people” never seem to want change. They despise “congress” but they all love their own representatives (or are just too lazy to care, more likely).
Something needs to change. Not sure what.
Either way, term limits will never happen, given that those who would have to vote on it are the same as those would would be affected.
If, repeat if, one choses term limits it should be to eliminate the insanity of elections.
I proposed this back in the 80s.
Rep: 10 x 2 year terms = 20 years. Recall elections if mandated by the people.
Sen: 4 x 6 year terms = 24 years. Recall elections if mandated by the State.
Pres: 4 x 4 year terms = 16 years. Recall elections if mandated by TBD.
Stagger the elections ala the Senate today so there is continuity in the legislature.
Unanswered question is the maximum tenure of a politician in Federal Government. Is 50 years too much? Unanswered.
This means the have to take credit and blame for everything they are involved in.
It also eliminates the known phenomenon of a Representative spending his first 6 months planning his re-election campaign.
A popular conservative view, with which I somewhat disagree, Several reasons.
Not disagreeing at all. Only asking for information.
There are at least 6 strong circumstantial and independent evidences.
Can you list links to those?
It goes back to Carter and perhaps earlier.
What else can we expect from a party which lionized the Hero of Chappaquiddick, who always solved difficult problems by cheating?
Remember, drive 55 to reduce oil imports from OPEC nations.
No, wait! Drive 55 to save lives! Speed Kills!
Wait wait wait, drive 55 in your electric vehicle to Save the Earth.
And that is the short list.
So now we can be killed by rogue AI but he is saving us by making sure it is green 🙂
Imagine if some AI company actually used the name “Cyberdyne” – we’d be shitting our pants then! 🤣
I remember hearing about a DOD initiative (early 90’s I think) that was briefly called SkyNet. Briefly.
Let the name “Biden” be stricken from every book and tablet. Let the name “Biden” be removed from every building and edifice. Let the Name “Biden” be unspoken and unheard. Let the name “Biden” be removed from the memory of humankind for all time. So let it be done!
Five days until the Biden Eraser.
Somebody on tv this morning said Biden wanted to be seen as a Visionary.
I had to laugh.
Biden is the most clueless president evah!
Biden is good at corrption and criminality and treason, but those are not qualities we want in a president.
History will not be kind to Biden.
Some will say the Left writes the History. That’s true to a certain extent, but the Left is not being very kind to Biden now, and I think that will continue because they are going to blame all the problems of the Democrats on Biden.
Biden, is without a doubt, imo, the worst president in the history of the United States for a number of reasons.
Five more days and he is out of there! It can’t come soon enough.
Biden gave his Farewell Speech last night and used it to warn us of bad things to come when Billionaires like Musk get together with Trump. Biden fails to mention that Biden is the one with all the Billionaires shoveling money to him and the other Democrats. Biden is indulging in projection. He is the dangerous one, not Trump.
I don’t think Biden would be considered “of sound mind” to sign a new will now, so what’s the possibility that companies hurt by these EOs could file a lawsuit that as Biden is not compos mentos to sign the order, the order is not legally enforceable?
I would love to see some companies explore that possibility.
A federal prosecutor ruled Joe Biden was not mentally capable of standing trial.
What about that, judge?!
Do you have to be mentally competent to issue presidential pardons?
Should be an easy case to make, given the fact that someone already decided he was too feeble minded to be prosecuted about the classified documents he illegally took with him when his term as VICE President ended.
I’m so tired of hearing about “clean energy”.
The only true clean energy I know of powers my vacuum cleaner.
Yes, since it doesn’t exist. We need a slide deck showing all the various types of mining being done (showing what that looks like) to confront every idiot who starts blathering about “clean” (NOT) energy.
Whenever I hear or see “clean energy”- whoever is saying it comes across as an arrogant, snooty, snob. An elitist who looks down their nose at “dirty energy” as if they have a clue about the subject.
Clean energy. Renewable energy.
Control the language, control the ideas.
How about the “gender affirming care” euphemism instead of sterilization, forced lifelong chemical dependencies, surgery reconstructions, etc. that really solve nothing and if the child realizes the mistake, no going back.
Artificial Intelligence is projected to use 11% of all of the electricity generated in the USA by the year 2030.
It will be nuclear for big tech and wind and solar for the rest of us.
That’s about 1000 time more that real intelligence seems to use.
The executive order is another eleventh-hour move in what appears to be an effort to stymy President-elect Donald Trump’s energy agenda
Not from what I read. Directing the DoD and DoE to lease lands for “clean energy,” which includes nuclear, to generate electricity to power AI server farms doesn’t stymy Trump’s proposal to open up federal lands to oil and gas leases. Leases for oil and gas drilling and leases for clean energy are not mutually exclusive. Unless leftist bureaucrats in the DoD and DoE purposely target land rich in oil and gas and prevent drilling by leasing it for “clean” energy. Banning offshore oil and gas exploration, however, is definitely an effort to stymy Trump. But executive orders last only as long as the next one that rescinds the previous one. And Trump will certainly terminate the ones that get in the way of his agenda.
More importantly, Congress needs to end the oil-and-mineral-lease yoyo between leftist presidents and intelligent ones. They need to legislate that oil and gas leases shall be issued on federal lands, regardless of who occupies the White House. Congress has unconstitutionlly delegated way too much of their responsibility to the Executive. Time to take it back and do their jobs for a change.
You got that right, but I imagine it is more convenient to maintain a long Congressional career if you can avoid being responsible for as much as possible and let the term-limited Executive take the heat.
Trump had some offshore bans, but I do not have the data to make any comparisons.
Another line of attack – end all subsidies for wind and solar. Not one “farm” will be built under that condition.
Wind and solar are basically useless for data centers so I can’t see this order have much practical impact. If they want to build a nuke next to some data centers, I say GREAT! Some common sense at last.
And if they can build nukes for Automated Idiocy, they can build them for *everything else* as well.
There’s some land in Delaware that could be very suitable for a major solar installation. There may be a building or two on it currently, but that should be trivial to remove. Just an older couple living there.
From the article: “I know many are skeptical about the need for clean energy.
Some don’t believe climate change is real – they’re wrong. The clean energy transition is already happening, and the United States must win.
This will shape the future of the global economy and the planet.
— President Biden (@POTUS) January 14, 2025
Oil, natural gas, coal and nuclear power generation will shape the future.
Those who rely on windmills and solar will be left in the dust.
Trump says he likes the idea that Artificial Intelligence Data Centers will build their own power plants to run these data centers.
That ought to be the official policy: Data Centers should build their own power plants so as not to put the burden on the Public with increased costs and/or cause shortages of electricity.
If AI Data Centers have to build their own electricity supply, you can bet none of them will be building windmills or solar.
AI centers using public grid for power is a double cost to the AI users. Have to pay to access and then the hidden fee of the power costs.
So, yes. They need to be energy self-sufficient. Perhaps even a bit extra to donate to the grid to help bring down costs for everyone.
This will shape the future of the global economy and the planet.
Of course, and notice it omits the USA…
Thank God, the Buddha, the freaking Universe or whatever…only4 days left!