How Trump's new money team will change energy
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Two big cogs in Donald Trump's plan to unwind Biden-era climate and energy policies have fallen into place.
Catch up quick: He tapped Russ Vought for another stint running the White House budget office and Scott Bessent for Treasury secretary.
Why it matters: Both nominees unveiled Friday are poised to have sway over changes to regulations and efforts to curb climate law spending.
The big picture: Let's start with Vought, who wrote the section of Project 2025 on the Office of Management and Budget.
- He sees a muscular role for OMB in guiding agency efforts (think EPA) to craft and unwind regulations.
The intrigue: Vought also wants executive discretion to "impound" — that is, not spend — funds Congress has appropriated, contra a 1974 law.
- The conservative think tank he founded argues the Impoundment Control Act is unconstitutional. Trump may look to challenge it.
💬 What they're saying: "I have little doubt that Vought will aggressively pursue impoundment as a general strategy, and IRA-related funding would be a likely target," James Goodwin of the lefty Center for Progressive Reform said.
- Vought is "itching for a court fight" over the law, and with Republicans controlling Congress, "the table is set for one," Goodwin, the group's policy director, said via email.
State of play: Now onto Bessent. The hedge fund manager has called the IRA a "doomsday machine for the deficit."
- His Treasury Department could change implementing policies to make tapping IRA tax subsidies harder.
- One example: Treasury could tighten rules that restrict Chinese materials from EVs eligible for purchase subsidies.
What we're watching: Bessent is less hawkish on tariffs than Trump and Commerce Department pick Howard Lutnick.
- How that shakes out is big for oil companies, which fear trade wars that could shrink export markets and raise steel and other costs.
