Previously published in the Grand Junction Sentinel.
America just went through the world’s most expensive energy divorce, complete with lawyers, custody battles over tax credits, and dramatic social media announcements. But like most breakups, this one might actually force us to figure out what kind of future we really want.
With passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), President Trump and congressional Republicans drew clear lines defining what they see as our energy future: fossil fuels, including coal, won huge. Renewables lost federal support. Energy planning across the nation has been upended, first by tariff uncertainty and now tax policy turnabout.
Not so many years ago, energy was a bipartisan priority. The shale revolution happened under Obama’s presidency. And remember when Republicans thought cleaner energy was a useful goal?
But somewhere along the way, our energy debates developed an unhelpful evangelical flavor. We started treating electrons and molecules like they have moral character: zero-carbon energy became saintly, fossil fuels became sinful — or vice-versa, depending on which congregation you attend.
If you worry about climate change, you’re a tree-hugging dreamer who wants to crash the economy with your solar panels and good intentions. If you worry that climate policies might hurt jobs or energy security, you’re clearly a heartless planet-destroyer who kicks puppies for fun. Distracted by our disagreements, we stopped solving big problems together.
Well, the divorce papers are signed. OBBBA is law. We’re out of the Paris Accord. The EPA’s been instructed to eliminate climate regulations faster than you can say “carbon” — except nobody in the federal government is allowed to say “carbon” anymore. Renewables lost their federal incentives and, possibly, their right to exist on public lands.
On the bright side, some zero-carbon technologies like nuclear and geothermal were allowed to keep their tax credits for a few years. I’m not sure what to make of this good fortune and hope it lasts.
Here’s what the energy wars have obscured: Economics are driving this transition. Despite the preferential treatment they received, fossil fuel industries still face the same realities they always have. OPEC still sets prices. Fracking wells still deplete quickly. Our petroleum products still compete in a global market where future demand is uncertain. Meanwhile, solar plus storage is the quickest, cheapest way to add grid power today. Major corporations are signing renewable energy contracts because those assets come online quickly and provide price certainty by avoiding volatile fuel prices. Technology keeps advancing whether politicians give it permission or not.
If we’re serious about American energy dominance, we need to get serious about out-innovating our competitors. That means advancing every promising technology: from modern nuclear reactors to more efficient solar panels, geothermal electric plants to next generation grid technology, longer-lasting batteries to progressively cleaner fossil fuels.
American energy dominance requires more than doubling down on technologies of the past. It should mean leading in the technologies that the world wants for its future. Paring back overly generous credits on solar and wind is a legitimate policy choice. But the United States government should stand proudly behind all our domestic energy industries — especially when we’re in a self-declared “energy emergency.”
Federal policy can create headwinds or tailwinds, but it can’t override economic forces. Most states — red and blue — will keep installing renewable energy because it’s profitable. Companies will keep investing in efficiency because wasting money is still bad business. Utilities will keep incorporating power sources that minimize cost and maximize reliability. Some of that will come from fossil fuels, but a lot will come from other energy resources.
The world is moving toward cleaner, cheaper, more distributed energy whether America leads or follows. The question isn’t whether this transition will happen — it’s whether American innovation, American workers, and American companies will drive it.
We can keep fighting our domestic energy wars, or we can start winning the energy future. The choice is ours. What kind of future do we really want?
Powering Forward 
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