Energy cronyism is not conservative

At the core of conservative ideology lies a fundamental belief: Government should refrain from picking winners and losers in the market.

Yet recent headlines ignited concern as presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump reportedly pledged concessions to a room of oil executives in exchange for campaign contributions to the tune of $1 billion. Shortly after a campaign rally in New Jersey, the former president promised to end offshore wind “on day one” if he is reelected to the White House. From proposed rollbacks of environmental regulations to promises of curtailing tax incentives for electric vehicles, both capitalists and environmentalists have reason to take notice.