Trump vs. green power Presented by National Clean Energy Week

With help from Anthony Adragna and Annie Snider

TRUMP GRAPPLING WITH GREEN POWER: President Donald Trump has tried a myriad ways to enact policies that help fossil fuels and sap the momentum of solar and wind power. But one year into his presidency, he’s repeatedly come up short. Pro’s Eric Wolff counts the ways: “Energy Secretary Rick Perry’s proposal to force electricity customers to subsidize ailing coal plants ran aground early this year. The Senate rebuffed efforts to water down tax credits for solar and wind power. And Trump’s move this week to impose a tariff on imported solar panels should put only a crimp in the growth of sun-powered energy, analysts have said, despite the outcry it’s generated from most of the U.S. solar industry.”


Another facet the Trump administration is facing is a limit to its authority. Trump, in some cases, has been forced to take a compromise position, “for example by choosing a solar tariff low enough to ease the damage to U.S. companies that rely on access to low-cost panels from abroad for solar power plants and rooftop arrays,” Eric writes.

He spent his campaign promoting an “America First” energy policy, and slammed solar as expensive and wind turbines as ugly. But after growing rapidly during the Obama years, Trump now faces a wind and solar industry that may have come too far for even a pro-fossil-fuel administration to stuff back into the barrel — especially after they've created tens of thousands of jobs in both red and blue states. "I think this administration really grappled with the understanding that solar is creating more jobs in this economy than many other industries and many other energy sources," Solar Energy Industries Association CEO Abigail Ross Hopper told reporters. "This [tariff] decision, while we’re not happy with it ... does demonstrate some restraint, understanding that this impact is going to affect jobs and growth in the U.S." Read more.

POLICY SHAPING UP AT AGENCY LEVEL: The White House has given Cabinet secretaries and agency heads almost total freedom to do what they want — a stark contrast to the micromanaged policy hand of the Obama administration, POLITICO's Nancy Cook reports this morning. A year after Trump took office, "the policy-making at several agencies is starting to gel," she writes. And, given Republicans’ one-vote margin in the Senate, it's unlikely the administration will score any big legislative moves anytime soon, potentially forcing it to rack up smaller victories at the agency level. ME readers might suspect how that's playing out over at the EPA: "Administrator Scott Pruitt has been aggressively rolling back parts of the Obama era’s environmental legacy since he took over, including a proposed ban on a pesticide that scientists say adversely effects people’s health," Nancy writes. In other instances, Trump "has been more than happy to take credit for what his agency heads are doing," she adds. Look no further than Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke's decision to slash the size of two national monuments in Utah, after which the president flew to Utah to tout the move.

"Deregulation is one of the Trump administration’s highest priorities, so you can expect many of the Cabinet departments and agencies to be launching their own agendas in that area this year,” said Leonard Leo, executive vice president of the Federalist Society, a conservative group devoted to limited government. “Expect many of those agencies and departments to be proposing new rules, or proposing to revoke old rules. That is the next step in this de-regulatory revolution.” Read the story here.

WELCOME TO WEDNESDAY! I'm your host Kelsey Tamborrino, and Bracewell’s Frank Maisano was the quickest to identify Sen. Nancy Kassebaum as the first female senator to chair a major standing committee in 1995. For today: Who was the youngest majority leader in Senate history? And at what age was he elected to the position? Send your tips, energy gossip and comments to [email protected], or follow us on Twitter @kelseytam, @Morning_Energy and @POLITICOPro.

Driverless Cars: Who’s Making Sure They’re Safe — At the Washington Auto Show, POLITICO will host a live panel to compare approaches on autonomous vehicle regulation. Speakers include Gov. Rick Snyder (R-Mich.) and Richard Threlfall, partner and global head of infrastructure at KPMG International. All registered attendees will gain full access to attend The Washington Auto Show on Jan. 25. Jan 25, 2018 — Doors open 11:30 a.m. — Walter E. Washington Convention Center — 801 Mt. Vernon Place NW

POSTCARD FROM DAVOS: Key leaders and thinkers from around the world have converged at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, and POLITICO is providing up-to-the-minute dispatches through our exclusive Davos Playbook ( sign up here) and a pop-up Davos Confidential podcast ( sign up here) to help track significant conversations, newsworthy events and the general buzz from the scene at #WEF2018.

LET THE SUNSHINE IN? Reactions to the administration’s tariff announcement didn’t fall along the usual party lines in the Senate, where some Republicans bashed the tariffs as potentially costing jobs and harmful to the economy. “I think it’s going to be very hurtful to our products in South Carolina,” Sen. Lindsey Graham told reporters. “I hope I’m wrong, but I’m afraid it’s going to cost us jobs.”

The bipartisan duo of Sens. Martin Heinrich and Thom Tillis, who led a letter from 16 senators opposing the imposition of tariffs, is exploring a legislative response. “We’re looking at all our options and trying to figure out what we can do to push back on this, but it’s an unmitigated disaster of the president’s own making,” Heinrich told reporters. Tillis was less critical: “We were glad that the extreme scenarios that were being floated didn’t occur,” but he said his staff is still looking at the potential impacts to “what has really become a very successful industry.”

Senate Energy Chairman Lisa Murkowski told ME the topic of tariffs broadly came up at the Republican weekly lunches Tuesday and said to expect “a lot more discussion and perhaps action steps coming out of the Republicans” on trade matters. As to her own reaction? “It seems that the decision that was made has managed to upset both sides,” she said. “Sometimes when you upset both sides, maybe you’ve found the perfect path in the middle.”

Still others thought the administration could have gone further. Oregon Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden, who led a letter calling for a strong response, said he was still looking at the decision, but quickly added, “I’m concerned that they did not follow the bipartisan commission’s recommendations.”

Separately, the Chinese and Mexican governments have both pledged to mount legal challenges against Trump’s tariff and trade restrictions, Pro’s Sabrina Rodriguez reports. “The imposition of high tariffs is an abuse of trade remedy measures,” said Hua Chunying, China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, on Tuesday. “We have noted that the U.S. investigation this time has not only caused concerns among many trading partners, but also been strongly opposed by many local governments and downstream businesses at home.”

A COASTAL ELITE: Zinke continued to defend his decision to exempt Florida from the administration’s offshore drilling plan in an interview with CNN. "The coastal currents are different, the layout of where the geology is," Zinke said of the state, where Trump ally Gov. Rick Scott vocally opposed the plan.

"In the case of Florida, the governor asked first for an immediate meeting and every member on both sides of the aisle contacted my office, wrote letters on it. So Florida is unique. As well as every other state has theirs," Zinke said. "Not every state has all the members against it and the geology is different, the currents are different and so looking at it, we're going to take the process, go through it, meet with every governor personally," he added. Read more.

JIM INHOFE IS TIRED OF WAITING: In the latest edition of the POLITICO Money podcast, Sen. Inhofe, a member of the Environment and Public Works Committee, said he would like to see Trump’s formal infrastructure proposal “yesterday," and expects to hear specific details during Trump's State of the Union address next week. “I’m a little frustrated because by this time I’d like to know a little bit more about some of these things that are not resolved yet,” Inhofe said. The Oklahoma Republican was largely dismissive of a recently leaked draft White House memo on infrastructure, saying it included few new details and did not clearly lay out how to leverage a relatively small amount of federal money, Pro's Ben White reports.

And on climate change: The Oklahoman also spoke about his continued dispute of the consensus scientific view that human activity is contributing to global climate change. “The science is not settled,” he said. “The climate is changing. The climate always has changed.” More here.

LEADERSHIP NEEDED: Trump will need to take the lead if he wants Congress to pass a bipartisan infrastructure package this year, Sen. John Thune said Tuesday. "It's just like on immigration. I think the president's going to have to play a big role," the Senate's No. 3 Republican told reporters. "It's going to take a lot of presidential leadership to get infrastructure, immigration, any of those big issues done." Thune added "a lot of it" will come down to how exactly the bill's costs are covered, Pro’s Lauren Gardner reports.

JAMES GETS A VOTE: The Senate will vote today on the nomination of R.D. James to be assistant secretary of the Army for civil works. At 2:15 p.m., legislators will vote on Alex Azar's nomination to HHS, as well as a motion to invoke cloture on Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback’s ambassadorship. The chamber will then vote on James.

FARM BILL LOBBYING RAMPS UP: Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue is in Pennsylvania today to roll out the administration’s priorities for the next farm bill, and among those paying attention will be drinking water utilities. After several high-profile instances of farm runoff fouling drinking water supplies, including the harmful algal bloom on Lake Erie that shut off the city of Toledo’s drinking water for three days in 2014, water utilities want to be part of the conversation. The American Water Works Association, which represents drinking water utilities, is pushing for robust conservation funding in the next farm bill with a special emphasis placed on protecting waters that serve as drinking water sources. See the group’s new animated whiteboard here.

ANOTHER SHUTDOWN COUNTDOWN: The shutdown drama that unfolded this week is far from over, with a new Feb. 8 deadline only 15 days away. And, as Pro’s Jennifer Scholtes points out, House lawmakers will only be at the Capitol for six of those if they intend to stick with their planned policy retreats. All the political disagreements that prompted the shutdown still remain, and it’s more unlikely now that lawmakers will want to kick the can further down the road. Democrats, for one, are digging in, Jennifer writes. Minority party leaders plan to continue withholding support on budget caps until a bipartisan immigration deal is reached.

‘THEY DO NOT HAVE THE VOTES’: Senate Commerce ranking member Bill Nelson told reporters Tuesday Rep. Jim Bridenstine’s nomination to lead NASA wouldn’t be able to clear the Senate if a vote occurred. “I know that at this point they do not have the votes,” he said. “This is the last thing in the world that NASA needs. NASA has never had a partisan politician. It needs a space professional as its leader.” Marco Rubio hasn’t taken an official on the nomination, but has criticized Bridenstine’s selection.

QUOTABLE: Here’s what Senate EPW Chairman John Barrasso said when asked what his argument is against even considering a carbon tax, even one where revenues went back to citizens in the form of a dividend. “I’m against the whole concept. It’s something that liberals have come up with and then they started raising different amounts — whether it’s 0 [dollars per ton of carbon dioxide], 20-something, 30-something and some say we need hundreds of dollars. It’s something they’re just pulling out the air and it’s ridiculous.”

CONGRATS! Sen. Tammy Duckworth announced she is pregnant Tuesday, which will make her the first senator to give birth while in office. “Bryan and I are thrilled that our family is getting a little bit bigger, and Abigail is ecstatic to welcome her baby sister home this spring,” Duckworth, a member of both the Environment and Public Works Committee and the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, said in a statement, referring to her husband and their 3-year-old daughter. More here.

MANCHIN WILL RUN: West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin told colleagues Tuesday he will run for reelection, The New York Times reports, "ending an anxiety-making flirtation with retirement and easing Democratic fears that the most conservative Democrat in the Senate was about to effectively hand his seat to a Republican." But not before expressing his frustration to Chuck Schumer and others, telling them that “this place sucks,” Manchin tells the Times. West Virginia’s deadline to file for reelection is Friday. More here.

LET’S NOT DO THIS AGAIN: A group of 10 senators, nearly all Republicans, introduced legislation Tuesday to make permanent the ban of earmarks, Pro’s Tanya Snyder reports. According to a group statement, the bill would create a procedural obstacle against any bill provision that orders congressionally directed spending, tax benefits or tariff benefits “targeted to a specific recipient or group of beneficiaries,” Tanya writes.

LISTEN HERE: Puerto Rico’s federal oversight board announced it will hold a listening session on the future of the commonwealth’s energy sector on Feb. 1. The session comes as part of the revision process that was kick-started by Gov. Ricardo Rosselló's announcement that he would privatize the commonwealth’s electric power utility and sell off its assets. Pro's Colin Wilhelm reports more here.

SCIENTISTS SUE EPA: Scientists filed a lawsuit Tuesday against EPA for its October move to bar agency grant recipients from advisory boards. The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, was brought by the nonprofit Protect Democracy and law firm Jenner & Block, representing the Union of Concerned Scientists and Elizabeth Sheppard, a professor at the University of Washington School of Public Health. It is the second such case brought against EPA's grant advisory move. Read the suit here.

BOMB CYCLONE BREAKS RECORDS: The cold snap that struck the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic in January resulted in record levels of U.S. natural gas demand, the Energy Information Administration said. The bomb cyclone weather also elevated wholesale natural gas and power prices around the country, EIA said.

SWITZERLAND RANKS NO. 1: The Yale Center for Environmental Law & Policy and Columbia Center for International Earth Science Information Network released its biennial Environmental Performance Index on Tuesday. The report, produced in collaboration with the World Economic Forum, finds Switzerland leads the world in sustainability, while the U.S. ranks 27th, with weak performance in areas such as deforestation and greenhouse gas emissions. Read it here.

MAIL CALL — PAUSE LINE PROJECT: Arkansas Sens. John Boozman and Tom Cotton are joined by Reps. Rick Crawford, French Hill, Steve Womack and Bruce Westerman in a letter to Energy Secretary Rick Perry on the Plains and Eastern Clean Line Project and changes in the transmission plan. Read it here.

— A coalition of energy, business and other groups — including the Advanced Biofuels Business Council and Advanced Energy Economy — wrote to Congress, urging the passage of a “a seamless multi-year extension of the ‘tax extenders’ as soon as possible.” Read the letter here.

MOVER, SHAKER: Stoney Burke will join Bracewell’s Policy Resolution Group as a principal focusing on energy, among other issues, the firm announced today. Burke most recently worked as chief of staff for Texas Rep. Will Hurd.

QUICK HITS

— Bigger, faster avalanches, triggered by climate change, The New York Times.

— Protesters deemed threat to Pruitt, triggered probe, E&E News.

— SandRidge rebuffs Icahn, boosting ruckus over shale firm's fate, Reuters.

— Oklahoma blast may be deadliest since start of U.S. shale boom, The Wall Street Journal.

— Philadelphia Energy Solutions files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, Oil & Gas Journal.

— Bank of America sees oil demand peaking by 2030 as electric vehicles boom, Bloomberg.

THAT'S ALL FOR ME!

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