Electricity prices across the United States have climbed 11% since Donald Trump returned to the White House, undercutting his campaign pledge to slash energy costs by half by 2026, according to new data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration analyzed by Climate Power.
Dems Call Out Trump
In a sharply worded letter to the president on Friday, Democratic senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore) accused the administration of worsening the energy crisis through policies favoring fossil fuels while undermining clean energy expansion.
"Your administration has no explanations for its failures and no answers for American families hit hard by high energy costs," the lawmakers wrote, reported The Guardian.
The letter links rising power prices to Trump's efforts to boost coal production—the nation's costliest and most carbon-intensive energy source—and his ongoing push against wind and solar power. The lawmakers, citing the new Climate Power analysis, say this stance has stalled or canceled enough renewable projects to power more than 12 million U.S. homes.
Climate Power's data also shows roughly 150,000 clean energy jobs have been lost or stalled since Trump took office, with another 150,000 at risk as renewable investments decline. The administration's proposed cuts to the $4 billion Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program and the Energy Star efficiency initiative—which has saved consumers an estimated $500 billion—have added to lawmakers' criticism.
White House Response
Responding to the letter, White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers blamed Democrats for obsessing over “unreliable and costly green energy," arguing that blue states continue to “have higher electricity prices."
The senators urged Trump to restore funding for renewable projects, reinstate energy assistance programs, and abandon costly fossil fuel mandates. "With heating costs set to soar this winter," they warned, "it is time to admit that your energy policy has failed and reverse course before it is too late."
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