The following OpEd by ConservAmerica fellow Alina Clough appeared in Real Clear Energy on January 17, 2025:
The 2024 election season made it clear that voters were unwilling to compromise on American energy affordability. Though Harris eventually capitulated on her previous anti-fracking positions, swing states’ embrace of the Trump-Vance ticket was a vote in favor of a strong all-of-the-above energy approach. Some now worry that the incoming Trump administration’s laser focus on affordability may jeopardize the planet’s health, but early developments should give conservationists some peace of mind. The new National Energy Council, led by Governor Doug Burgum will bring much-needed consistency between American environmental and energy policy. Based on who has been chosen to lead it, the initiative looks like exactly what the country – and the climate – ordered.
As the second Trump administration begins to solidify its cabinet picks, expanding American energy dominance appears to be a top priority. In mid-November, Trump announced he would be tapping Doug Burgum of North Dakota to lead the Department of the Interior, a two-term governor who prioritized agriculture and oil during his term, going on to run on energy, economy and national security issues in the national primary. Doubling down on his administration’s energy focus, though, Trump also released a statement announcing that Burgum would be co-leading a new National Energy Council, tasked with overseeing the expansion, management, and security of American energy.
Burgum will be joined by Chris Wright, a trailblazer in the energy sector, to serve on the National Energy Council. Wright, a prominent entrepreneur and energy expert, is best known for founding Liberty Energy, a company that owes its rise to the shale revolution. Liberty can hardly be considered a typical multi-national fossil fuel company, however. In many ways, the company reflects a scrappy, small-scale ethos born of the shale boom, and far closer to the American heartland than the massive international oil conglomerates that tend to be the face of “big oil.”
Trump’s announcement underscored this, as well as Wright’s expertise outside of shale, calling out “nuclear, solar, geothermal, and oil and gas,” signaling that the Council would be focused primarily on expanding American energy, not just winning favor with fossil fuel companies. This signals a much-needed shift in national energy strategy, one that balances traditional energy dominance with diversification and sustainability.
Certainty for American energy can’t come soon enough, and is necessary as the economy looks to boost confidence in the resources required for the coming tech boom, which will be crucially dependent on cheap, reliable power for data centers. Boosting domestic energy security also helps to bolster the country’s geopolitical position amidst uncertainty in Russia, especially as the Biden administration quietly continues apace with aid and mobilization in Ukraine.
At the same time, the goals of the Council are hardly confined to supporting the economy and national security; the environment stands to benefit, too. The United States has spent years hamstrung by permitting bottlenecks, which stifle progress not only on both fossil fuel projects, but have also grown to be the leading barrier to clean energy projects.
The Council’s pragmatism could also yield environmental benefits in its all-of-the-above approach, especially through its harnessing of nuclear energy. While progressive critics often champion renewables as the only solution, Burgum and Wright’s leadership appears poised to help the energy industry acknowledge the complexities of decarbonizing an economy as large and diverse as America’s. By incorporating nuclear energy, addressing permitting delays, and promoting technological innovation, the Council’s work would be poised to result in emissions reductions without compromising the reliability, affordability, or security of American energy.
This balanced approach is precisely what the nation—and the planet—needs. By prioritizing energy security while investing in a diverse range of energy sources, the National Energy Council has the potential to navigate the intersection of economic growth and environmental stewardship effectively.
In an era where partisanship often stifles progress, the Council’s leadership team represents a refreshing focus on results over rhetoric. For a country eager to lead on energy and climate issues, the Trump administration’s National Energy Council could be the vehicle for meaningful and lasting change.
Alina Clough is a fellow at ConservAmerica.