Rejecting Extremism: Why Voters Chose American Energy and Common Sense

President Donald Trump’s overwhelming victory on Election Day was another signal that the American people want to embrace affordable American energy and reject the incessant “doom and gloom” narrative being touted by environmental extremists.

For decades, radical environmental groups like Greenpeace have been employing apocalyptic rhetoric while offering so-called solutions that would make energy more expensive and make life worse for working-class Americans. This election was a rejection of that rhetoric and an embrace of common sense.

These environmental extremists tell us that Americans reject fossil fuels. But in the month before the election, polling found that 4 out of 5 swing-state voters believed that domestic oil and gas production could help lower energy costs for American consumers. Rising costs were a big concern for voters, and the cost of energy impacts everything from grocery bills to transportation.

Voters faced a clear choice between Trump, who enthusiastically embraced the “Drill, baby, drill” mantra, and Vice President Kamala Harris, who spent the final months of the campaign walking back her previous support to ban fracking.

If Democrats learn anything from their electoral defeat, it should be that activist groups like Greenpeace actually speak for a small group of elites—not for the American people.

Unfortunately, Democrats have spent years being beholden to extremist environmentalists who are more effective at generating media coverage than effective policies. Groups like Greenpeace continually attempt to kill American pipeline projects, raise money for their cause, and then ignore the real-world impacts of their actions.

These environmental activists claim to be speaking on behalf of the world, yet simultaneously ignore the global impacts of their actions. If they were paying attention, they would recognize that killing fossil fuel projects like refineries and pipelines in the United States does not stop them from being built. It merely ensures that they’ll be built in other countries with significantly weaker environmental policies than the United States.

One entity that does understand this dynamic is China, which has benefited greatly from the loud resistance efforts of Greenpeace and others. Without sufficient pipeline capacity in North America, Canadian oil that should be refined in the United States is often shipped to China instead. Crude oil processing hit record highs in China in 2023, and the country is expected to continue building out its refining capacity.

This Chinese refinery boom has led to China being a net exporter of diesel, jet fuel, and home heating oil for the first time in the nation’s history. Because China lacks meaningful pollution controls, this increase is dangerous for the global environment. It’s also dangerous for the American economy, as this economic activity is benefiting the Chinese government rather than American companies and workers.

Meanwhile, the United States has become a global leader in environmental stewardship. Over the past five decades, we have reduced pollution by nearly 80%, achieving safe and clean air that’s only imaginable in other places around the world, while also being No. 1 in access to clean and safe drinking water. And we’ve done this while growing our energy production and our population, proving that we can have responsible energy production that doesn’t compromise on environmental quality.

America is the most responsible energy producer on the planet, and the world needs more energy to eradicate poverty, not less. Access to affordable American energy could serve those in need far better than any alternative.

In spite of this, Greenpeace is doubling down on its own failures. After the election, the group released a statement calling on its activists to “resist and persist” in their fight against fossil fuels. Greenpeace USA’s executive director also added that resistance to the Trump agenda is key for “our organization’s relevance and survival.” It’s worth noting their concerns are for their own organization, not for the American people.

As debates continue to rage over energy in the years ahead, it is worth remembering that the American people clearly favor solutions that embrace fossil fuels and keep energy prices down. This is something Democratic policymakers should keep in mind the next time Greenpeace protesters encamp at a pipeline site or college campus.

The Honorable Jason Isaac is founder and CEO of the American Energy Institute. He previously served four terms in the Texas House of Representatives.

Originally Published In The Daily Signal on November 23, 2024