Marcel Akhame

Why are critics of the Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act pretending that the deal is "pro-data center?" @BenKrauss5 explains that its a strategy being deployed by groups trying to stop much-needed reforms that will make it easier for America to build the clean energy and transmission capacity we need: Members of Congress likely aren’t hearing from their constituents about the danger of fossil fuel infrastructure, but they are more concerned about being associated with the politically toxic issue of data centers. That’s why, while the argument is weak, it needs to be thoroughly and vocally debunked. This strategy was first hinted at in a leaked organizing call that occurred among several high-profile environmental organizations shortly after the bill was announced. When brainstorming ways to stop the bill, a senior advisor at the Environmental Protection Network raised the prospect of framing their argument around data centers: “You know, something that we really need to lean into, and I think it brings in data centers. I mean, he [Trump] could be issuing permits to Elon Musk to build a coal plant, you know, and build a data center in the Grand Canyon.” Of course, this is an absurd exaggeration, but it’s the sort of fear mongering that is being used to distract from the fact that this bill contains robust ratepayer protections that are quite popular when voters hear about them. In a recent message test from Inclusive Abundance, the message about making “data centers pay for their upgrades” performed the best, even compared to the one about lowering energy bills. wordsinsearchlight.org/p/con…

NEWS: 19 FORMER ECONOMIC AND NATIONAL SECURITY LEADERS ENDORSE THE BIPARTISAN PERMITTING REFORM BILL Today, a group of former Cabinet members and White House principals across seven Democratic and Republican administrations sent a letter calling on Congress to pass BAAJA. Here are the signatories: Janet YELLEN, Michael R. POMPEO, Steven T. MNUCHIN, Leon E. PANETTA, Timothy F. GEITHNER, Henry M. PAULSON, Jr., Robert E. RUBIN, Stephen MIRAN, Jared BERNSTEIN, Tyler GOODSPEED, Jason FURMAN, Glenn HUBBARD, Laura D’Andrea TYSON, Michael J. BOSKIN, Jeffrey ZIENTS, Jake SULLIVAN, Brian DEESE, Larry KUDLOW, Allan B. HUBBARD Key highlights from the letter: 1. “We are not building infrastructure fast enough to remain globally competitive… The median time for a new power plant to move from an interconnection request to commercial operation has more than doubled, from less than two years for projects built between 2000 and 2007 to more than four years for projects built between 2018 and 2024. 2. China has built more high-voltage transmission in the last fifteen years than the U.S. has built in all of its history... In 2024, China accounted for 31.5% of global knowledge- and technology-intensive manufacturing value added, compared with 20.7% for the United States. 3. Federally funded or permitted projects require NEPA review, but private projects often do not, creating a threat of failure precisely where the government is trying to be proactive, strategic, and engaged. 4. A project that spends years awaiting approval must continue carrying development and financing costs while remaining exposed to rising input costs. The IEA reports that prices for utility-scale transformers increased 26% in 2024, while lead times for some transformers have stretched as long as six years. 5. Mining projects also face tremendous uncertainty: a 2026 study by researchers at the Colorado School of Mines found that permitting for modern mining projects takes an average of 5.5 years, rising to 8.9 years for contested projects. The U.S. currently has the second-longest mine development timeline in the world. 6. The Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act is the most significant bipartisan legislative effort that Congress has undertaken in decades to tackle these challenges. 7. BAAJA addresses key constraints stifling American industry by requiring interregional transmission planning, strengthening the federal backstop for nationally significant transmission lines, and creating a faster, more predictable process for connecting new generation to the grid. 8. BAAJA also makes permits more durable by imposing tighter timelines for litigation and limiting frivolous lawsuits that can halt projects indefinitely, while preserving community input and judicial review of substantive agency decisions.” The letter was organized by @arnabdatta321 on behalf of @IFP and covered exclusively by the WSJ this morning.