Affordable, Reliable Energy Is at Risk as the Battle Moves to the States

By Gary Abernathy

This article was originally published by The Empowerment Alliance and is re-published here with permission. 

In just over seven months, President Trump has achieved numerous historic accomplishments while leading what is nothing less than a revolution. Few achievements have been more impressive than the speed at which he and Republicans in Congress rolled back much of the energy-crippling “Inflation Reduction Act” of 2022.

The act was a massive funneling of billions in tax dollars to the Church of Climatology – courtesy of President Joe Biden and congressional Democrats – packaged as inflation control. Even Biden himself later lamented the fact that they hadn’t simply named the bill what it really was.

“The Inflation Reduction Act — I wish I hadn’t called it that, because it has less to do with reducing inflation than it does to do with dealing with providing for alternatives that generate economic growth,” Biden admitted a year after the bill became law, while celebrating the billions of tax dollars being handed to “alternatives” such as the wind and solar industries.

Rather than fight inflation, the bill “committed $369 billion to environmental projects, including grants to renewable energy companies and tax breaks for consumers,” as the New York Post described it – a move that has been widely blamed as a major factor in the inflation that followed.

Trump and the Republicans in Congress have clawed back as much of Biden’s reckless spending as possible, and various departments in the Trump administration continue to identify and cancel funding wasted on climate cult programs – sometimes after battles with over-reaching courts.

But the radical left isn’t giving up without a fight. In fact, it has established new front lines across the country. The strategy was detailed recently in a New York Times interview with Gene Karpinski, the just-retired leader of the League of Conservation Voters, who declared that while the fight at the federal level might be stalled, “We can continue to be on offense in state after state after state.”

After Trump took office the first time in 2017 and stood up against the climate cult, “We went back to the states, elected a lot of new governors, a lot of state legislators,” Karpinski explained. “Literally less than 1% of the public lived in a state with a policy that said we need 100% clean energy back in 2017. Now over 40% of the country lives in a state with 100% clean-energy policy, and the programs will continue in most states.”

Indeed, while many advocates for legacy fuels were focused on surviving the Biden administration’s all-out federal assault on affordable and reliable energy, the “renewables” contingent was working to elect friendly lawmakers and build movements at the state level.

In an ideal world, long-trusted energy mainstays and “renewables” would work hand-in-hand, with wind and solar companies spending the coming decades sorting out their economic and technological challenges while at the same time acting as energy supplements. Instead, they too often wage all-out war on traditional energy, demanding immediate surrender. That’s why, for the sake of consumers everywhere, lawmakers who care about affordable and reliable energy must mount a vigorous defense against the assault from the radical “green” movement.

Led by various members of Congress, efforts are underway to enshrine conventional energy protections into federal law. But establishing similar legislation state-by-state is just as crucial in light of the left’s state-based playbook.

Louisiana has led the way. Earlier this summer, the state became the first in the nation to codify affordable and reliable energy into law, in part by guaranteeing “equal treatment for all energy sources.” As Gov. Jeff Landry said when signing the new energy legislation, “This bill sets the stage for an energy renaissance – not only here, but in America.” The bill supports over 306,000 oil and gas jobs in the state and guarantees transparency to consumers. But more importantly, it recognizes the effectiveness, affordability and relative cleanliness of natural gas, and promotes its production and use as a cornerstone of energy policy. Similar legislation is emerging in other states.

On the other side, Karpinski was clear that the goal of the radical left is to enshrine “100 percent clean-energy policy” in state after state. What does that mean? It means setting arbitrary dates to shut down natural gas and other proven energy sources (several states have already taken steps to do so). It means wasting even more taxpayer dollars on subsidies or tax credits for “alternatives.” It means consumers finding themselves at the mercy of unreliable “renewables” that many existing electric grids are unprepared to handle.

The climate cult’s head start at the state level should concern everyone who cares about protecting low-cost dependable energy. The good news is that state lawmakers already have the outline of a proposal to fight back. The Affordable, Reliable and Clean Energy Security Act (ARC-ES) is a blueprint that guarantees energy certainty for all Americans. Similar to what passed in Louisiana, ARC-ES keeps energy affordable and accessible while also meeting important environmental goals.

In state after state, the radical left is on a crusade to vanquish our most cost-effective and reliable energy sources. There is no time to wait. Energy freedom and security must be defended now.

Gary Abernathy is a longtime newspaper editor, reporter and columnist. He was a contributing columnist for the Washington Post from 2017-2023 and a frequent guest analyst across numerous media platforms. He is a contributing columnist for The Empowerment Alliance, which advocates for realistic approaches to energy consumption and environmental conservation. The opinions expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Empowerment Alliance.

This article was originally published by RealClearEnergy and made available via RealClearWire.