President Trump’s first day in office sent reverberations throughout the policy world. Protecting and promoting American energy production was chief among the President’s early actions.

Revisiting a common theme from his first term, the president renewed the focus on American energy dominance. With a string of executive orders, Trump turned the nation’s focus away from the alleged climate crisis (with its associated spending on wind, solar, and batteries) toward rebuilding supplies of affordable, reliable and secure energy. Trump promised to “end the Green New Deal” and ensure increased production of the “liquid gold” — the nation’s vast oil and gas resources — needed to power the new focus.

Media reports have questioned the need to refocus. The United States remained the world’s leading producer of oil and gas during the Biden administration, producing 13 million barrels of oil and 110 billion cubic feet of gas per day — 14.7% of the world’s production.

However, even the more extreme elements of the environmental movement recognize that “The vast majority of leasing, drilling, and production happens on private and state lands.” Production on those lands expanded as Mr. Trump’s predecessor had restricted development on federal lands.

Trump appears undeterred by media headlines describing his energy plans as “obliterating” the former president’s energy legacy. “We will drill, baby, drill,” promised the president in his inaugural speech. “America will be a manufacturing nation once again, and we have something that no other manufacturing nation will ever have — the largest amount of oil and gas of any country on earth — and we are going to use it. We’ll use it.”

To ensure the success of his new energy paradigm, Mr. Trump signed several energy-related executive orders immediately after being sworn into office.

• Declaration of a National Energy Emergency: This executive order is designed to reduce or streamline regulations and expedite the permitting process for energy projects. It aims to boost domestic oil and gas production and lower consumer energy prices. This order directly repudiated the Biden administration’s ongoing actions to restrict or stall energy production.
• Withdrawal from the Paris Climate Agreement: Mr. Trump signed the order to begin the year-long process of withdrawing from the Paris Climate Agreement, which aligns with his policy of distancing the United States from international climate commitments he views as economically burdensome. Originally signed during President Obama’s administration, the treaty required the United States to pour billions into climate funds administered by the United Nations, reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 28% below 2005 levels by 2025, and commit to regular reviews that result in increasingly strict emission reductions. This is the second time Trump has pulled out of the “legally binding international treaty on climate change” after President Biden re-entered the agreement in 2021.

“I’m immediately withdrawing from the unfair, one-sided Paris climate accord rip-off,” Trump explained in his post-inauguration ceremony at the Capitol One Arena. “The United States will not sabotage our own industries while China pollutes with impunity.” Trump’s orders also halted American funding for the United Nations Framework on Climate Change, “which oversees the implementation of the Paris Agreement and the annual COP summits.”

• Promoting American Energy Production: Trump signed orders to increase oil and gas development and refill the strategic petroleum reserve “right to the top.” He emphasized Alaska’s role in American energy production. He also pushed to expedite permitting nationwide and reverse “the punitive restrictions implemented by the previous administration that specifically target resource development on both State and Federal lands.” Another order also began reversing Biden’s January 6 order to ban offshore exploration and drilling in more than 625 million acres of U.S. coastal waters. Trump’s orders revoked drilling bans and ordered studies on improving the strategically important Trans-Alaska Pipeline System. Trump’s actions have also promoted the effort to restart construction of the Keystone XL pipeline.
• Rework or Cease the Use of the Social Cost of Carbon Metric: One executive order requires the Environmental Protection Agency to address the flaws inherent in the “social cost of carbon” metric or eliminate its use in federal permitting and regulatory decisions. This metric attempts to put a price on the net social benefits (or costs) of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, based on questionable scientific and economic analyses. “The SCC is indispensable in concept but extremely malleable and borderline unworkable in practice,” explains one Cato Institute review of the metric. The order clarifies how the abuse of the social cost of carbon impedes regulatory action, hinders competition, and “encourages a greater human impact on the environment” as it effectively expands the market share of less efficient foreign energy production.

• Pausing Offshore Wind Leases and Permits for Onshore Wind: The president also paused new approvals of offshore wind leases in federal waters. His order “temporarily prevents consideration of any area in the [Outer Continental Shelf] for any new or renewed wind energy leasing.” The order requires an assessment to “consider the environmental impact of onshore and offshore wind projects” on wildlife, as well as “the economic costs associated with the intermittent generation of electricity and the effect of subsidies on the viability of the wind industry.”
• Reversing Electric Vehicle Targets and Appliance Bans: The president also revoked Biden administration policies that targeted growing electric vehicle sales to 50% of new vehicle sales by 2030. The order targeted Biden’s “electric vehicle (EV) mandate” and pushed to “promote true consumer choice,” recognizing it as “essential for economic growth and innovation.” The order seeks to lessen regulatory burdens, limit “unfair subsidies” and “government-imposed market distortions,” level the regulatory playing field, and stop (where possible) state waivers that restrict internal combustion vehicle sales. The order used similar language to target restrictive policies and regulations on home appliances, lighting, and bathroom fixtures. It “safeguard[s] the American people’s freedom to choose from various goods and appliances.”

The president’s early executive actions represent a strategic shift toward American energy independence. They encourage Americans to leverage our abundant natural resources, prioritize domestic energy production, enhance national security, and stimulate job creation within the energy sector.

While progressive greens attack the orders as a step backward on environmental and climate change issues, these policies are a return to a more balanced approach to energy and environmental policy. The previous administration’s energy policies ignored cost and reliability issues and focused almost solely on perceived environmental challenges. Effective energy policies can balance reliability, cost, and environmental stewardship.

Permission to reprint this blog post in whole or in part is hereby granted, provided that the author (or authors) and the Mackinac Center for Public Policy are properly cited.