President Trump and the Trump administration are shifting their stance on fossil fuels, breaking with the Biden administration’s efforts on green and clean energy sources and combating climate change. Trump aims to execute a series of orders to increase our domestic fossil fuel production. As part of these executive orders, President Trump declared a national energy emergency. This national energy emergency is not for all forms of energy, as the Trump administration is focused on production of domestic fossil fuels.
During his inauguration speech, President Trump said, “We will drill, baby, drill” emphasizing his strong desire to increase natural gas production and showing where the Trump administration stands on their climate policy. The current republican administration feels that regulations have impeded the further development of affordable and reliable electricity causing high energy costs across the board. Invoking the National Emergencies Act, allows for suspending some environmental regulations and the ability to sidestep standard bureaucratic processes, approvals and public notifications. President Donald Trump blames President Joe Biden for, “the harmful and shortsighted policies of the previous administration” which he claims is a threat to our Nation’s economy, national security and foreign policy, pointing out insufficient energy generation, refining, production, and transportation. While this administration is focusing on fossil fuels, they are downplaying the role of solar and wind power in the generation mix, as they were a major focus of the previous administration’s climate policies. Many feel the previous administration was too focused on supporting clean energy and renewable energy and did not focus enough on how to lower energy costs for Americans.
The Trump administration has outlined several key policies aimed at solidifying the United States’ energy dominance:
- to encourage energy exploration and production on Federal lands and waters, including on the Outer Continental Shelf, in order to meet the needs of citizens and solidify the United States as a global energy leader long into the future;
- to establish the position of the United States as the leading producer and processor of non-fuel minerals, including rare earth minerals, which will create jobs and prosperity at home, strengthen supply chains for the United States and its allies, and reduce the global influence of foreign and adversarial states;
- to protect the United States’ economic and national security and military preparedness by ensuring that an abundant supply of reliable energy is readily accessible in every state and territory of the Nation;
- to ensure that all regulatory requirements related to energy are grounded in clearly applicable law;
- to eliminate the “electric vehicle (EV) mandate” and promote consumer choice, which is essential for economic growth and innovation, by removing regulatory barriers to motor vehicle access; by ensuring a level regulatory playing field for consumer choice in vehicles; by terminating, where appropriate, state emissions waivers that function to limit sales of gasoline-powered automobiles; and by considering the elimination of unfair subsidies and other government-imposed market mechanisms that favor EVs over other technologies.
- to safeguard the American people’s freedom to choose from a variety of goods and appliances, including but not limited to lightbulbs, dishwashers, washing machines, gas stoves, water heaters, toilets, and shower heads, and to promote market competition and innovation within the manufacturing and appliance industries;
- to ensure that the global effects of a rule, regulation, or action shall, whenever evaluated, be reported separately from its domestic costs and benefits, in order to promote sound regulatory decision making and prioritize the interests of the American people; the Energy Emergency
Not everyone feels the same way about this “energy emergency” as the White House. When looking at the data, the United States produces more oil and gas than any other nation world-wide. But something needs to be done to help with the energy demands to support growth with artificial intelligence, data centers or other technologies. Trump’s solution is to roll back regulations, speed up the approval process and cut through the red tape that could slow things down. The republicans hope that this will bring more power plants online, more pipelines will be built and an increased deployment of drilling rigs. Their sights are on exploring and using federal land or eminent domain, which is when the government takes private property for public use with some form of compensation. The emergency declaration will also authorize special provisions to grant approvals for energy projects under several existing laws including the Clean Water Act and the Marine Protection Research and Sanctuaries Act.
While this energy emergency has been declared, no one is certain how everything will play out. Concern has been expressed regarding the Trump administration’s willingness to adhere to the previous administrations’ obligations and energy policies. The Biden administration signed the Inflation Reduction Act into law in 2022 which provides hundreds of billions of dollars of incentives to promote and encourage technologies that reduce or eliminate the greenhouse gases responsible for climate change. The environmental impacts of climate change are already being seen across the country. Rising sea levels are claiming houses along the coasts, wildfires are devastating communities, and droughts are impacting local agriculture. Many are concerned that by rolling back plans to cut carbon emissions and pushing more fossil fuel production could only worsen the impacts Americans are already feeling.
Congress will help to push the new agenda with a vote to repeal some of the Biden administration initiatives and climate regulations. If passed, two bills would undo the ruling that limits methane emissions from gas and oil operations, along with efficiency standards for water heaters. The Energy Secretary Chris Wright and the Interior Secretary Doug Burgum had clearly stated the goal is to make it as easy as possible for this administration to drill in federal waters and on federal lands. The Supreme Court has also previously shut down clean power initiatives by other administrations, and there is little evidence they will go against the Trump administration’s policies so far.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) believes that the actions they are taking to roll back the trillions in hidden “taxes” and regulatory costs will make things more affordable for Americans, which will breathe life back into the American auto industry, and will create more jobs.
“Today is the greatest day of deregulation our nation has seen. We are driving a dagger straight into the heart of the climate change religion to drive down cost of living for American families, unleash American energy, bring auto jobs back to the U.S. and more…Alongside President Trump, we are living up to our promises to unleash American energy, lower costs for Americans, revitalize the American auto industry, and work hand-in-hand with our state partners to advance our shared mission,” said EPA Administrator Zeldin.
In his first term, President Trump withdrew from the Paris Agreement and is expected to withdraw, again, in his second term. The efforts to roll back climate policies could drastically hinder decarbonization efforts and increase greenhouse gas emissions. The US had previously aimed to reduce emissions by 50% by 2030. With the new executive orders, the Trump administration may lead to emissions decrease of only 28% below 2005 levels by 2030. The Wind Energy executive order will withdraw any new or renewed wind energy lease activity. The existing offshore wind leases will remain valid but will become subject to amendments or even potential termination of those leases.
Unleashing American energy is one of the main goals to restore America’s energy dominance, along with reforming the permitting processes. With the rising demand for energy in growing sectors like data centers and AI, the US is lacking the energy infrastructure to support this rapid growth in demand. The National Energy Dominance Council has been created to aid Trump and the federal government in their efforts to drive the US energy market. Access to reliable, efficient, and affordable energy is key to energy security. The new administration is focused on increasing domestic energy supply and energy production, lowering energy prices, with less focus on energy resources like solar and wind energy.
Congress is expected to play a significant role in shaping the new energy agenda. A proposed vote could repeal some of the climate regulations from the Biden administration, including those that limit methane emissions from gas and oil operations. If passed, these bills would also weaken efficiency standards for water heaters and eliminate certain state emissions waivers. The Supreme Court has previously shut down clean power initiatives from other administrations, leaving many uncertain about how they will respond to the Trump administration’s policies.
Environmental advocates are concerned that the administration’s efforts to roll back regulations could stymie decarbonization initiatives and result in higher greenhouse gas emissions. Under the Biden administration, the U.S. had committed to cutting emissions by 50% by 2030, but experts predict that the new orders could limit reductions to just 28% below 2005 levels.
One of the administration’s key goals is to “unleash American energy” by restoring the nation’s energy dominance and reforming the permitting process. With rising demand for energy driven by sectors like data centers and AI, the U.S. faces infrastructure challenges. To address this, the Trump administration has created the National Energy Dominance Council to support its energy policy initiatives.
The administration’s focus is on expanding fossil fuel production, lowering energy prices, and reducing reliance on solar and wind energy. However, critics worry that this approach could delay progress on renewable energy and climate change mitigation. As the U.S. continues to grapple with the economic and environmental consequences of climate change, the debate over energy policy remains a contentious issue.