In this newest century of activism, advocacy and the shameless politicization of every facet of government, the Department of Energy (DOE) has released a complex and sober assessment of our energy grid. Mark Mills, senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, called it, “the perfect government report: a tutorial chock full of useful data, along with observations that provide something interpretable for everyone,” yet as far as Democrats are concerned; the Government has launched a jihad against science.
As Mills went on to note; the EconoTimes said the DOE “Declares War on Renewable Energy.” Other outlets chastised the DOE for “burying head deep in the sand.” But because the government didn’t advise propping up one industry over another, as we have for years now, it was considered an “assault” on renewables.
{mosads}The report, didn’t “declare war” or draw a line in the sand, instead it took an honest look at the energy mix in America affirmed that it’s not solar and wind that are the problem, but how government is distorting the energy marketplace.
Over the past decade, the federal government decided that the energy future of America had room for only one industry; renewable. Not only renewable, but “palatable” renewables. Cleaner fuels like wind and solar were celebrated, while cleaner fuels like nuclear and clean coal were kicked to the curb. Billions in subsidies, lost tax revenue, and outright handouts provided a massive boost to the industry which compelled many companies to take renewable products, often those still in the infancy of design, and rush them out into the marketplace.
The aggressive policies that promoted the solar and wind industry have been a disaster. In “clean energy loans alone, as of 2015 more that $2.2 billion had been lost. Companies like Ener1 received over$118 million in subsidies, while others like Solyndra received almost half a billion dollars in support. Besides the utter embarrassment these failures caused and their ultimate bankruptcy, they also caused tremendous destabilization in the energy market.
Since many green advocates refuse to face the hard truths about solar and wind power (because are so committed to making these the sole power sources in America) they fail to see how they’re actually hurting the industry they are most passionate about.
The truth is that(variable renewable energies e.g., wind and solar (VRE) have as many challenges as they do misfortunes. Power storage, effective energy collection, and long term viability are all legitimate and real limitations which their proponents must address before said industries can be effectively embraced nationwide.
Even California, a state which proudly touts its solar capacity, still relies on other states for energy support when solar production reaches its limits. And the massive solar subsidy game creates an environment tailor-made for abuse and manipulation. Some of the worst failures of the Obama-era solar investments never even produced a watt of energy before collapsing and taking billions of taxpayer dollars with them. These failures cause massive market distortions that obscure the real cost of energy production.
The report in no way “declares war” or diminishes the importance of solar and wind power, but rather quite the opposite. The report lauds their place in America’s energy mix, and has an optimistic view of their future, but acknowledges that their adoption needs to be slowed down to ensure that they are utilized in the most effective way possible. To that end, removing the billions in taxpayer dollars from the pockets of solar corporations and investing even a fraction of that in research and development would have a far greater return in the long run for America’s energy future.
Beyond this, the report is a victory for reasonable and rational government work that puts America’s future and prosperity before the demands of lobbyists who shamelessly distort our institutions to serve their goals. As it states in the report, “There is no complete multi-year assessment available that describes and analyzes the Federal subsidies and support provided to different generation technologies over time.” The problem is as clear as day; the government does not account for the subsidies.
Andrew Shirley is the director of operations for Citizens for the Republic, and Martha Boneta is the executive vice president. Citizens for the Republic is a conservative grassroots lobbying organization dedicated to promoting the ideology and political philosophy of Ronald Reagan. Reagan established the original CFTR in 1977. In 2010, a group of Reagan stalwarts re-launched the organization.
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