US energy policy is on the brink of a dramatic shift as President Donald Trump seeks to dismantle the Obama Administration’s environmentally-friendly energy initiatives, remove environmental and climate concerns from US energy policies, and reorient focus on producing low-cost energy and creating American jobs. To achieve the desired increase in domestic fossil fuel production and energy employment, President Trump, his administration, and his allies have promised to implement the America First Energy Plan, intended to reinvigorate the US coal industry, expand domestic fossil fuel production, cut regulations, open federal land for fossil fuel exploration, and reduce federal support for climate and environmental programs.

In an issue brief on US energy production in the Trump era entitled, “The America First Energy Plan: Renewing the Confidence of American Energy Producers,” Global Energy Center Senior Fellow Dr. Sara Vakhshouri argues that Trump’s energy plan has created optimism in an industry that has suffered under low oil prices and an increasingly difficult political environment, due in to part to growing support for climate policy. Vakhshouri notes that while the plan still faces formidable challenges to implementation, and the results remain to be seen, the Trump Administration’s policies thus far have generated optimism for fossil fuel producers and could create a more favorable environment for increasing domestic production.

 

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