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WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO TRUMP’S SOLAR-POWERED BORDER WALL? A year ago when President Trump was, yet again, fighting Congress over funding for his border wall, he had teased the idea of making it one of the largest renewable energy projects in the Southwest.

But the idea of a renewable-electricity generating border wall has since been relegated to the back fence, even after Trump endorsed the idea in an effort to get more buy-in from the Democrats.

Litigation threat: The only real consequence of Trump supporting the solar-wall idea appears to be the threat of litigation from the designer who first floated the plan to Trump and his advisers.

Vijay Duggal, who first proposed the idea to the Trump administration in 2017, said he was planning a multi-million dollar lawsuit against Trump for using the solar wall idea in public remarks.

Yet, despite Trump’s remarks, none of the designs that the administration chose for the border fence included one with integrated solar panels that Duggal had discussed with White House advisers soon after Trump was inaugurated.

Duggal first discussed his idea last year with Trump, his son-in-law Jared Kushner, and other top administration officials and lawmakers like outgoing Ways and Means chairman Rep. Kevin Brady, R-Texas.

The Houston Chronicle reported that Duggal’s solar-wall plans were mailed to the administration between between February and May 2017.

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PELOSI GOES BIG ON CLIMATE CHANGE DURING OPENING SPEAKER SPEECH: Incoming House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is expected to declare climate change “the existential threat of our time” during her swearing-in speech this afternoon.

Excerpts of her prepared remarks contain an entire section dedicated to the “climate crisis.”

She plans to say: “We must also face the existential threat of our time: the climate crisis — a crisis manifested in natural disasters of epic proportions.… The entire Congress must work to put an end to the inaction and denial of science that threaten the planet and the future. This is a public health decision for clean air and clean water; an economic decision for America’s global preeminence in green technology; a security decision to keep us safe; and a moral decision to be good stewards of God’s creation.”

The focus on climate shows Pelosi’s recognition of pressures from progressives to make climate change a dominant issue this year.

Initial climate steps: The House is expected to approve a rules package today that formally establishes a new Select Committee on the Climate Crisis — a Pelosi priority — to draw attention to the issue.

But some progressives worry that the language creating the committee does not specifically reference the “Green New Deal,” which is their aggressive plan to draft a climate change bill by 2020 that would require 100 percent of electricity to come from renewable sources within a decade.

FERC COMMISSIONER KEVIN MCINTYRE DIES: According to multiple reports, Kevin McIntyre, a commissioner and former chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, died on Wednesday. E&E first broke the story on Thursday.

McIntyre, a Republican nominated by Trump, was diagnosed with a brain tumor in the summer of 2017, a condition that forced him to step down as FERC chairman in October after less than a year on the job. He remained a commissioner, but had not participated in recent meetings or votes.

McIntyre, 57, upon stepping down as chairman said he recently experienced a serious health setback, leaving him “unable to perform the duties of chairman with the level of focus that the position demands and that FERC and the American people deserve.”

Neil Chatterjee, a fellow Republican commissioner nominated by Trump, replaced McIntyre as chairman.

McIntyre’s death leaves FERC with four commissioners, split between Republicans and Democrats.

SENATE CONFIRMS KEY TRUMP ENVIRONMENT, SCIENCE NOMINEES: The Senate confirmed dozens of stalled Trump administration nominees Wednesday night, just hours before the close of the 115th Congress, including key energy and environment officials.

It confirmed Kelvin Droegemeier to serve as the director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy; Alexandra Dunn as the Environmental Protection Agency’s top chemicals regulator; and Mary Neumayr to head the White House Council on Environmental Quality.

A first for Trump: Droegemeier, Trump’s first science director, served two six-year terms on the National Science Board, under presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama. A trained meteorologist, Droegemeier has also served as Oklahoma’s secretary of science and technology.

Trump had left the science and technology adviser position vacant for 19 months before nominating Droegemeier, providing fodder to critics who say his administration is downplaying science, especially as it relates to climate change.

But Droegemeier, a Republican, has bipartisan credentials to lead a White House agency that helps set policy on issues involving innovations in medical research, self-driving cars, artificial intelligence — and climate change.

A centrist pick: Dunn, tabbed to lead EPA’s Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention Office, received bipartisan support in her November confirmation hearing. Known as a centrist, Dunn has most recently been administrator of EPA Region 1, the local office covering the New England area.

Neumayr will become Trump’s top environmental adviser in the White House. She was Trump’s second choice for the job after his first nominee, Kathleen Hartnett White, removed herself from consideration for the post after Democrats objected to her climate change views, and few Republicans came to her defense.

Neumayr was previously chief of staff for the environmental council and also served in the Bush administration’s Energy and Justice Departments and as a counsel for the House Energy and Commerce Committee.

BIPARTISAN GROUP HOPEFUL ABOUT NEW TRUMP OFFICIAL MOVING EFFICIENCY STANDARDS INTO LAW: The bipartisan Alliance to Save Energy led by a number of senators is optimistic that the appointment of Daniel Simmons to lead the Energy Department’s renewable energy and energy efficiency office will lead to a backlog of new energy conservation standards for appliances being cleared.

“One of the big opportunities for energy cost savings is with appliance and equipment standards, and I appreciate Simmons’ commitment in his hearing to ‘process through that backlog’ of overdue standards,” Jason Hartke, the group’s president, said on Thursday after the Senate confirmed Simmons on Wednesday night along with several other Trump appointees.

Simmons said he would move ahead on the new standards, which constitute new regulations, despite the Trump administration’s deregulation agenda.

The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy has a $2.1 billion budget, which leads a plethora of federal programs to improve energy conservation through setting mandatory standards for manufacturers that build appliances, to programs to help weatherize homes and help states adopt energy codes for new buildings.   

FORMER LOBBYIST TAKES OVER AS ACTING INTERIOR HEAD AS ZINKE STEPS DOWN: Deputy Interior Secretary David Bernhardt is now serving as the acting head of the Interior Department.

Bernhardt, a former lobbyist who represented energy interests, showed up Wednesday at a White House Cabinet meeting after former Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke penned a farewell note in red marker that he posted on Twitter after officially stepping down.

BLOOMBERG SET TO VISIT SUNSHINE STATE ON CLIMATE TOUR: Possible 2020 Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg will visit the crucial swing state of Florida this week as he tours the country talking about climate change.

Bloomberg, a billionaire philanthropist and former New York City mayor, will meet with St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman on Thursday and will stand beside Kriseman as he announces new environmental policies for his city, according to local news website Florida Politics. The pair will also speak to Moms Demand Action, the gun control advocacy group.

RUNDOWN

Wall Street Journal Fracking’s secret problem — oil wells aren’t producing as much as forecast

Washington Post Communities confront the threat of unregulated chemicals in their drinking water

New York Times A Trump county confronts the administration amid a rash of child cancers

Reuters Renewables overtake coal as Germany’s main energy source

SPONSOR MESSAGE: In 2018 the United States continued to drill its way toward energy independence. With the country now producing record-setting amounts of oil and natural gas, the need for infrastructure to transport those resources – from the Bakken, Marcellus, and Permian shale formations all the way to New England – is more important than ever. Fortunately, midstream projects such as the now-complete Rover Pipeline and expanding Dakota Access Pipeline are setting the stage for safe and efficient energy transportation across the U.S. GAIN is hopeful that 2019 will be another momentous year for American energy. To learn more head to www.gainnow.org or follow us @GAINNowAmerica.