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Biden’s green energy fiasco, not Trump’s reforms, is jacking up your electric bill
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There’s a battle to define a narrative about what’s to blame for rising electricity prices. Some claim higher electricity prices are due to President Donald Trump’s “one big beautiful bill,” which curtailed subsidies for “cheap” wind and solar installations. Others blame AI’s rapidly expanding appetite for electricity, while some blame inflation. None of these charges hold up under scrutiny.
But shifting blame, usually with the help of a complicit media, helps with the only thing that matters to most politicians: seizing political power.
This is readily seen in California Democrat Gov. Gavin Newsom’s trip to Belém, Brazil, to rub elbows with the global elite at the U.N.’s COP30 global climate conference on Nov. 11. Newsom, an all-but-declared candidate for the Democratic nomination for president in 2028, slammed the Trump administration for not attending the confab, accusing the president of “handing the future to China,” presumably in the category of selling solar panels embedded with secret kill switches.
Newsom went on to say that “We’re not turning backwards to the failed policies of the past — California is fighting for a clean-energy future, even as President Trump bends the knee to his Gulf-State patrons and takes a nap as the world burns.” Newsom also claimed that California is now operating its grid on “two-thirds clean energy,” with California operating on 100% non-fossil-fuel energy for at least part of the day nine out of 10 days this year.
NEWSOM CLAIMS TRUMP IS ‘HANDING THE FUTURE TO CHINA’ AT BRAZILIAN CLIMATE CONFAB THAT WH SKIPPED
Solar power energy microgrid in California, as part of that state’s green energy push. (Photo by SANDY HUFFAKER/AFP via Getty Images)
But California now has the nation’s second-highest electricity prices, only behind Hawaii, with the Golden State’s electricity prices rising the most of any state since 2010: 127%, according to a new report from Jonathan A. Lesser, Ph.D., a senior fellow with the National Center for Energy Analytics.
The truth that Newsom doesn’t want Californians — or Democratic primary voters — to know is that “green” energy is expensive energy. That’s because, “60% of the time, (wind and solar) works every time” to borrow from the much-memed comedy “Anchorman.” And, it’s very costly to make sure the power is on when wind and solar aren’t producing.
This, Lesser notes, is one of the main culprits in rising electricity costs.
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The Biden-Harris administration’s reckless push for subsidized wind and solar — and California’s before that and since — has destabilized our grid and forced consumers to foot the bill for fortifying unreliable “green” energy with reliable gas power and expensive batteries — the latter of limited utility.
From the first quarter of 2010 to the second quarter of 2025, average residential electricity rates across the U.S. surged by about 63%, according to Energy Information Administration (EIA) data. But the pain isn’t evenly distributed. States like Massachusetts and California not only endured the steepest hikes, but now boast two of the nation’s highest rates — over 30 cents per kilowatt-hour in some cases.
Critics peddle all sorts of excuses for these increases. One target is data centers, those power-hungry hubs fueling AI and cloud computing. Sure, they consume a lot of power — Virginia, a data center hotspot, has seen demand rise. But Virginia’s rates? Below-average increases and still under the national norm. If data centers are the villain, why isn’t the Old Dominion suffering like California?
TRUMP’S UN SPEECH REVEALS INCONVENIENT TRUTH OF MASSIVE GREEN ENERGY COSTS
A recent International Renewable Energy Agency report touts falling costs for renewables. But as Lesser’s analysis shows, that’s a half-truth at best. Subsidies like the federal production tax credit — now $27.50 per megawatt-hour — let wind and solar operators undercut the market with negative bids, distorting wholesale prices and squeezing out reliable baseload plants — which end up not being built.
Here’s the missing link the green advocates ignore: the shift in our generating mix. Between 2010 and 2024, U.S. electricity capacity grew 16% to 1,325 gigawatts, outpacing a mere 5% rise in retail sales. Sounds good, right? Wrong. Dispatchable sources — coal, gas and nuclear, which can ramp up on demand — plummeted by 80 gigawatts. Intermittent wind and solar ballooned seven-fold, to 278 gigawatts.
California Governor Gavin Newsom traveled to Brazil for the COP30 World Climate Conference, touting his state’s energy policies while the Trump administration skipped the event. (Larissa Schwedes/picture alliance via Getty Images)
This trend accelerated in 2025: More than 1,900 megawatts of fossil fuel retired by July, with another 12,600 megawatts slated for shutdown by year’s end and into 2026. What’s replacing them? More subsidized wind, solar, and pricey batteries.
TRUMP’S ENERGY PRICE PROMISE IS COMING DUE. HE HAS THE POWER TO SOLVE THE CRISIS
It’s policy malpractice. States like New Jersey and New York forced premature closures of reliable power plants such as Oyster Creek nuclear in 2018 and Indian Point in 2021, which powered a quarter of New York City’s needs.
Biden-era EPA rules, now being rolled back under Trump, would have shuttered most coal plants by 2032. Mandates for cars to have “zero-emissions” by 2035 in places like California ignore reality. Where will they get the electricity? Wind and solar can’t provide inertia or reactive power, essential for grid stability.
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The fallout? Skyrocketing prices.
NEWSOM PUSHES CLIMATE RECORD ABROAD AS CALIFORNIANS SHOULDER AMERICA’S HIGHEST GAS COSTS
The truth that Newsom doesn’t want Californians — or Democratic primary voters — to know is that “green” energy is expensive energy.
Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act — only now going into effect, so any electricity price increases to this point aren’t due to the law — flips the script. By rescinding President Joe Biden’s vehicle emission standards and fossil fuel crackdowns, it prioritizes affordable, dispatchable energy. Expect more nuclear builds, streamlined pipelines and fewer handouts to Big Green. This won’t spike prices — it’ll stabilize them by restoring reliable supply.
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Biden’s (and Newsom’s) green zealotry promised cheap power, but delivered the opposite: unaffordable, unreliable electricity that hampers economic growth. Trump’s reforms demonstrate that true energy independence means ditching the myths and embracing what works.
Americans deserve a grid that powers prosperity, not one that bankrupts it.
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One of San Francisco’s busiest freeways remained shut down Saturday, creating major traffic delays and dampening business for some local restaurants and shops.
All eastbound lanes of Interstate 80 just before the Bay Bridge are closed as crews work around the clock to rehabilitate the roadway. The 55-hour shutdown, which began on Friday night, is scheduled to last until Monday morning in time for the commute.
The closure has forced drivers onto detour routes, leading to heavy congestion for those trying to reach the East Bay, including Oakland and Berkeley.
The impact is being felt beyond the roadways.
At MoMo’s, a restaurant across from Oracle Park, staff found business noticeably slower.
“A little bit more mellow than usual. We usually see a little bit more foot traffic, a little bit more people on Saturdays,” said Daniel Bermudez, executive chef at MoMo’s.
Bermudez believes the freeway closure may be discouraging visitors from coming into the city this weekend, despite favorable weather.
“The weather is beautiful today. It’s nice and sunny. So we have plenty of tables outside,” he said.
With the San Francisco Giants playing an away game, the restaurant had hoped fans would still gather to watch, but turnout during game time remained light.
“This is kind of like our off-season Saturday. A lot slower than our baseball weekend,” said Casandra Alarcon, general manager at MoMo’s.
Other small businesses in the Mission Bay and South of Market neighborhoods reported similar trends, saying most of their customers are regulars who live nearby rather than visitors.
“A little bit slower for sure. Before, we had tourists come and walk to the baseball park,” said Ajaree Safron, manager at Brickhouse Cafe & Bar.
Caltrans has shut down eastbound lanes between 17th and 4th streets to repave the 71-year-old roadway. The goal is to extend the life of the Bayshore Freeway by another decade.
City and transportation officials said the timing of the closure was intentional, noting fewer major events scheduled in San Francisco this weekend, aside from the Cherry Blossom Festival.
Westbound lanes remain open, and officials said traffic heading into San Francisco from the East Bay has not been significantly affected.
“Getting into the city, it wasn’t too bad. Regular [traffic], what we expect on a Saturday morning,” said visitor Andrea Inouye.
While the closure has posed challenges for businesses, some workers said they are taking it in stride.
“Hopefully, it’s not for too long and we get past it, and get back to our normal routine,” Bermudez said.
Despite early concerns about widespread gridlock, transportation officials said the region has avoided the worst-case scenario. Traffic remains heavy in areas near detours, but the anticipated “carmageddon” has not materialized, in part because many drivers chose to avoid the area or take public transit.
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Thanks to Carrie Brown for the westward view of our Saturday night sunset. The high today hit 68 at the airport – eight degrees above normal – but nowhere near the record for this date, which was 89 degrees back in 2016. The forecast suggests two more days of partly sunny, almost-70-degree weather, before the chance of rain returns.
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