Fueling the Crisis: Trump Guts Green Policies in the Name of Inflation Relief

Author: Natalia Freeze

Editor: Clara Conry

What is clear is that these rollbacks will have a disastrous impact on climate change, which will hurt the cost-of-living for American families.

Since taking office in January, President Trump has issued a staggering number of executive orders. His directives targeting renewable energy, environmental justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts, and sustainability policies have alarmed environmentalists about the country’s future. What will the next four years look like? The memorandum on Delivering Emergency Price Relief for American Families and Defeating the Cost-of-Living Crisis has declared a national energy emergency and called for the elimination of green initiatives, claiming that this will tame inflation and provide economic relief.

First, the blame: the new administration holds the former President Biden responsible for a “historic inflation crisis,” allegedly driven by excessive and unlawful regulatory demands on American energy production. The directive specifically criticizes policies such as the government subsidies on electric vehicles that are “disfavored by consumers.” In 2023, the United States produced more oil than any country in history, contradicting claims that Biden’s climate regulations stifled energy production. In fact, the oil and gas industries that supported Trump’s campaign promises of deregulation could see declining profits if supply exceeds demand. 

Next the solutions: to combat what he describes as a cost-of-living crisis, Trump has outlined the following actions. 

1. Lower the cost of housing and expand housing supply.
2. Eliminate unnecessary administrative expenses and rent-seeking practices that increase healthcare costs.
3. Eliminate counterproductive requirements that raise the costs of home appliances.
4. Create employment opportunities for American workers, including drawing discouraged workers into the labor force.
5. Eliminate harmful, coercive “climate” policies that increase the costs of food and fuel.  

A striking feature of Trump’s memorandum is its lack of specificity. Despite claiming to offer relief, the directive does not outline any concrete policy measures to curb inflation. For instance, how will his administration address the soaring cost of housing and expand housing supply? Instead, the memorandum relies on divisive rhetoric, referring to a “crushing regulatory burden” and “radical policies designed to weaken American production” of fuel and other goods.

The memorandum’s attacks on green initiative are blatantly misleading. Targeting energy efficient home appliances will not lower utility bills, but it certainly caters to the natural gas industry which fears  “being increasingly shut out of households.” Moreover, renewable energy is in fact, not more expensive than fossil fuels – according to a post from the United Nations: “Renewables are the cheapest form of power today,” saving the United States “$55 billion in global energy generation costs” in 2022.  The insinuation that only the fossil fuel industry can deliver stable jobs is even challenged by some Republicans who “back the IRA tax credits,” which have driven investment and job growth in their districts. 

The flawed logic in President Trump’s memorandum may explain why the executive order struggles to present tangible solutions. Ultimately, this memorandum aligns with the Trump administration’s broader efforts to dismantle environmental regulations and climate policies. What is clear is that these rollbacks will have a disastrous impact on climate change, which will hurt the cost-of-living for American families. The National Centers for Environmental Information reports that since 1980, the United States has incurred over $2.915 trillion in damages from 403 weather and climate disasters–a staggering cost that will only rise without stronger mitigation efforts. Lowering the cost-of-living–both now and for future generations–requires investing in green initiatives, not abandoning them.