‘America First Energy Plan’ (‘climate-change’ histrionics demoted)

As observed by the anti-fossil-fuel Left, minutes after becoming President Trump, the White House’s climate webpage was deleted and a new page inserted. As it turned out, Obama’s White House (per John Holdren) did not have an energy page.

ThinkProgress (Center for American Prosperity) ominously reported the above substitution:

On January 20, Donald Trump was sworn in as the 45th president of the United States. Minutes later, the White House website switched hands — and previous pages detailing President Obama’s climate change plans went dark. The new website features, instead, a page dedicated to “An American First Energy Plan,” which details the new administration’s stance towards energy and (a lack of) climate policy.

The new White House home page under ‘ISSUES: Top Issues’ leads with “America First Energy Plan.”

The brief mission statement (reprinted below) can be interpreted as follows:

• Energy essentialism (a commanding height that requires a free market, not statism)
• Production, infrastructure first (a radical shift from keep-it-in-the-ground)
• Worker, consumer, and national welfare (climate-change metric gone)

As to policy specifics, expect:

• Aggressive public-land mineral development
• Public infrastructure upgrades funded from new public-land mineral revenues
• Market protection of ‘clean coal’ power generation, as in state-of-the-art pollution-controlled coal emissions [1]
• Emphasis on air and water quality, the traditional job of US EPA

The 361-word America First Energy Plan follows:

Energy is an essential part of American life and a staple of the world economy. The Trump Administration is committed to energy policies that lower costs for hardworking Americans and maximize the use of American resources, freeing us from dependence on foreign oil.

For too long, we’ve been held back by burdensome regulations on our energy industry. President Trump is committed to eliminating harmful and unnecessary policies such as the Climate Action Plan and the Waters of the U.S. rule. Lifting these restrictions will greatly help American workers, increasing wages by more than $30 billion over the next 7 years.

Sound energy policy begins with the recognition that we have vast untapped domestic energy reserves right here in America. The Trump Administration will embrace the shale oil and gas revolution to bring jobs and prosperity to millions of Americans.

We must take advantage of the estimated $50 trillion in untapped shale, oil, and natural gas reserves, especially those on federal lands that the American people own. We will use the revenues from energy production to rebuild our roads, schools, bridges and public infrastructure. Less expensive energy will be a big boost to American agriculture, as well.

The Trump Administration is also committed to clean coal technology, and to reviving America’s coal industry, which has been hurting for too long.

In addition to being good for our economy, boosting domestic energy production is in America’s national security interest. President Trump is committed to achieving energy independence from the OPEC cartel and any nations hostile to our interests. At the same time, we will work with our Gulf allies to develop a positive energy relationship as part of our anti-terrorism strategy.

Lastly, our need for energy must go hand-in-hand with responsible stewardship of the environment. Protecting clean air and clean water, conserving our natural habitats, and preserving our natural reserves and resources will remain a high priority. President Trump will refocus the EPA on its essential mission of protecting our air and water.

A brighter future depends on energy policies that stimulate our economy, ensure our security, and protect our health. Under the Trump Administration’s energy policies, that future can become a reality.

There are many fill-in-the-blanks under the above introductory plan. To the extent that government intervention emerges in federal energy policy, MasterResource, and the entire free-market community, can be expected to push the Trump Administration toward pro-consumer, taxpayer-neutral, pro-international positions.

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[1] I assume that “clean coal” does not mean government subsidization of CO2-capture technologies, which is not only government intervention and cronyism but also a sap toward climate change policy.