Energy dominance means investing in renewables and our energy transmission infrastructure — not providing giveaways to the oil and gas industry.
As American households and businesses face soaring electricity bills, and energy consumption is projected to skyrocket due to growing AI demand, the United States needs a plan to meet the moment. Instead, President Trump has called for “energy dominance.”
America does need affordable, reliable, and domestically produced energy—and more of it—but Trump’s policies don’t achieve any of those goals. His version of “energy dominance” means giveaways to the fossil fuel industry. If we want an affordable and reliable electric grid, we must add the fastest-to-build, most affordable generation sources now. That means an energy mix centered on solar, wind, and energy storage, and investments in updates to the electric grid and transmission reform.
What we need is a holistic energy mix with energy infrastructure reform.
The federal government needs to make informed decisions when it comes to the country’s energy needs. A comprehensive energy policy that will be able to meet our increasing energy demands should include:
- Investments in energy, like solar and wind, that’s affordable, reliable, quick to come online, and not dependent on foreign entities to set the price, unlike oil and gas. This should include investments in sources like batteries and geothermal energy, which can fill the gap created when demand is higher than supply, as well as developing innovative technologies to ensure the best usage of various energy sources like nuclear energy.
- Building a more reliable electric grid by improving the grid interconnection processes, deploying more grid-enhancing technologies, and upgrading and expanding the country’s interregional transmission capacity.
- Early community input and thoughtful conflict reduction to maximize benefits throughout and avoid controversies that slow things down.
- A just energy transition that doesn’t leave any community behind. Many energy communities have been beholden to revenues from fossil fuels, but efforts to diversify and invest revenues can create more shared and long-term prosperity.
What we don’t need: giveaways to fossil fuels and excessive taxes on clean energy.
Ever since the Trump administration took office, it’s been claiming that the United States is facing an “energy emergency” and needs to assert “energy dominance.” But at the same time, President Trump is implementing executive orders that advantage the fossil fuel industry—the same people he promised to help while asking for campaign contributions—while harming the clean energy industry. One of these orders focused on reinvigorating “America’s beautiful clean coal industry,” an industry that has led to 460,000 deaths over a twenty-two-year period due to its high levels of pollution. This action will also lead to increased costs for households and businesses due to the high cost of operating aging coal plants.
Relying on fossil fuels means we’re vulnerable to international disruptions and global politics, both of which affect how much Americans pay on their energy bills. This is because oil and gas prices are subject to market forces. The United States cannot drill its way to energy independence, no matter how many promises Trump has made to his donors.
At the same time, the Trump administration has committed itself to reversing the progress the country has made on clean energy, particularly onshore and offshore wind, and has gutted efficiency regulations. This will lead to a less reliable electric grid and higher electricity prices for all Americans. Trump has intentionally left out wind and solar from his “energy dominance” agenda, despite the fact wind and solar projects are affordable, quick to come online, and reliable.
Wind and solar are rapidly helping grow our energy supply, accounting for seventy-two percent of new energy capacity added to the grid in 2024. Clean energy sources also help to lower costs for consumers — wind and solar saved $11 billion in wholesale electricity costs for Texas in 2022. Energy Star, one of the energy efficiency programs under fire by the Trump administration, has saved consumers over $500 billion on energy costs since 1992.
Americans want more affordable and clean energy choices, not dependence on the oil and gas industry, which has too much influence over American and global politics and is responsible for worsening cases of extreme weather and public health.
Trump’s version of “energy dominance” is dedicated to and dependent on this industry—when it should be focused on lowering energy bills and making our energy system more secure. Instead of trying to “dominate” everything, we should focus on what actually benefits working-class Americans. The United States must invest in clean sources of energy, which are cheap and quick to come online; make the necessary upgrades to the grid; and dedicate resources to the infrastructure needed to move America forward and meet our rising energy demand needs.
About the Authors: Kendra Hughes and Lucero Marquez
Kendra Hughes is the associate director for Clean Energy and Conservation at American Progress. Prior to joining, she advocated for methane reduction policies as a U.S. policy manager at Clean Air Task Force. Hughes also worked at Environmental Defense Fund, developing and advancing air quality, climate change mitigation, and environmental justice legislation on Capitol Hill. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in political science from Mount St. Mary’s University.
Lucero Marquez is the associate director for federal climate policy at American Progress. She previously worked as a research consultant for the Evans School Policy Analysis and Research Group investigating development policy through a climate change lens and as an air dispersion modeler for the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. She earned her Bachelor of Science in meteorology from Texas A&M University and her Master of Public Administration in environmental policy from the University of Washington.
Image: Shutterstock/AndriiKoval
