Why Clean Technology Will Still Win – CleanTechnica

Sign up for daily news updates from CleanTechnica on email. Or follow us on Google News!

---

As of this writing, things don’t look for the Kamala Harris campaign. The swing states are slowly being called for Trump, and the remaining ones are all leaning his way with high percentages of the vote counted. By the time you read this, it’ll probably be over. Given the pro-fossil fuel positions of Trump, Project 2025, and all of the other stuff we’ve been talking about for the last several years, many people are already pretty despondent about what this means for clean energy.

In this article, I want to spread some hope and explain why Trump cannot beat clean energy.

He Tried It Before & Lost

I’m very much aware of reasons why things might be different this time compared to Trump’s last time in the White House, but it’s still worth starting this article out by reviewing his past failures to kill clean energy. This not only gives us hope, but shows us what the limits of the Oval Office are.

I wrote about this in 2021, right after Trump unwillingly left the office. You can read the full article here, but let’s quickly review the facts.

In 2017 and 2018, Trump had a “trifecta”. He controlled not only the presidency, but his party was in control of the House of Representatives and the Senate. This meant that the Republican Party could do almost anything. But, it sure didn’t do them much good. He couldn’t exit the Paris Agreement, but even if he could, a variety of private actors (who have rights) decided to stick with it. Tariffs failed to stop solar installations. He couldn’t get the votes together to end solar tax credits. He couldn’t even save coal plants from closing down.

After losing control of Congress in 2018, things got even harder and Trump grew more desperate. He tried a raft of executive actions to kill renewables, such as lowering fuel economy standards and stripping California of its ability to set more stringent standards. Both failed. He asked for a federal investigation of automakers who opposed him on these things, but that harassment failed. His attempt to gain dictator-like power over automotive manufacturers in the revised NAFTA agreement also failed, because he couldn’t push Canada and Mexico around like he thought.

The Advantages of Renewables Are Hard To Beat With Government Power

No matter what gets put in a wishlist to Trumpy Claus (Project 2025), wishful thinking doesn’t override market forces. Renewables are now cheaper per kWh than most fossil fuels, and people all over the political landscape are already enjoying the benefits of solar power, even if on a small scale.

To beat renewables and give the power back to fossil fuel companies, Trump would need to take drastic action that makes electricity bills more expensive, kills a boatload of American jobs, and robs people of their choices. He might be able to get rid of some subsidies if he tried really hard, but if you look on Amazon, there are tons of cheap unsubsidized solar panels, battery packs, and more. To kill that market would require steep, punishing tariffs and even bans that free market Republicans would balk at.

If there’s one rule in politics, it’s that you’re the bad guy if you take something away. This alone would frighten him away from that.

What If He Goes Full Dictator?

I can already hear it, and you’re right. The limits on presidential power do cease to matter if a president gets away with ignoring all of them. So, if he does that, things would definitely be different than the first Trump term where the constitutional system of checks and balances kept him from doing his worst.

It’s important to keep in mind that even dictators don’t have the kind of unlimited power that Darth Sidious (Palpatine) lusted after. There are practical limits to their power that come from things like international relations, economic reality (especially scarcity), warfare, and the simple fact that the dictator’s men can’t be everywhere and see everything. Even under the most oppressive of regimes, criminals still smuggle things. People have underground movements, or simply underground social activities, defying the state on things.

While modern technology can enable more advanced oppression, like surveillance and repression of free speech, technology is a two-edged sword. Encryption, VPNs, 3D printing, off-grid communications, off-grid energy production, cryptocurrency, and many other modern inventions make the job of a repressive state a lot harder. Having the ability to produce your own energy without relying on a supply chain helps enable all of this and keep it out of the grip of the dictator’s toadies.

Using all of the above to resist the state is known as agorism, or counter-economics. This has been the realm of anarchists and libertarians for decades, but every time a resistance movement or simply people who don’t want to obey a tyrant want to do something, agorism comes into play to some extent or another.

Small acts of resistance add up to real resistance over time. A missed tax here, a missed tariff there, an uncontrolled firearm floating around somewhere else—it all adds up to diminished power for the dictator over time. And, the pen is mightier than the sword. Being able to exchange value via cryptocurrency or simply communicate things a dictator doesn’t want to hear can effect a lot of change over time.

Like it or not, this “dark side” of clean technology makes it harder for bad people to get rid of.

Attempts to Stop Clean Technology Eventually Destroys Dictatorships

To truly eradicate electric vehicles, solar, wind, and batteries, someone like Trump would have to violate a whole lot of people’s rights. The right to private property. The right to freedom of speech. The right to freedom of movement. The right to vote with your dollar. All of these things would be violated and piss a lot of people off. This saps the legitimacy of a wayward president or a dictator alike. When enough people decide they aren’t cooperating anymore, the dictator ends up in the trashbin of history (and possibly an early grave).

In the end, it’s a bit like the movie Men in Black. If a tyrant decides to start eating people like the cockroach did, the meal eventually doesn’t digest very well!

Featured image by Jennifer Sensiba.