The American Prospect - Even Under Trump, Americans Can Fight Climate Change

Legal director Sandeep Vaheesan emphasizes that expanding public power is crucial for fighting climate change, as it allows for faster and fairer transitions to clean energy.

In his address to the joint session of Congress last Tuesday night, President Trump stressed his opposition to action on climate change, touting his withdrawal from the “unfair” Paris climate accord and pledging to “drill, baby, drill” for the “liquid gold under our feet.” This followed his freezing of federal funding for assorted climate programs and his efforts to impede wind energy development.

Regardless of whether Trump and his officials are successful, the public should expect few, if any, affirmative steps on climate from the federal government. In this environment, it may be tempting to treat Amazon, Facebook, Google, and Microsoft as indispensable climate actors. They want to power their data centers using clean electricity. Given the major contractual commitments these companies have made to purchasing clean energy, their promises are more than just public relations.

Counting on Big Tech to be climate saviors would be a mistake, however. The power consumption of data centers more than doubled between 2018 and 2023, and in Virginia, these facilities in 2023 accounted for 26% of the state’s total electricity use. Tech giants will consume more renewable and fossil fuel–generated energy and are much more likely to be climate villains than heroes. Further, we do not need to put our faith in the social responsibility of dominant corporations. A better alternative—publicly owned power—is solidly established in the United States. State and local agencies like the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power can build clean power systems that work for all.

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