Renewable Energy Industry Readies Wish Lists for Joe Biden
November 27 2020 - 05:59AM
Dow Jones News
By Gabriel T. Rubin
THE RENEWABLE ENERGY LOBBY gears up for a Joe Biden presidency
much friendlier to their industry than the Trump administration.
Within days of Biden's victory, the associations representing the
solar and wind industries pushed out their detailed agenda wish
lists for the new administration to immediately act upon, many of
which don't require congressional action in what could be a divided
government, depending on the outcome of the Georgia Senate
runoffs.
The solar industry wants Biden to rescind tariffs on imported
solar cells and modules, appoint solar-friendly members to the
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and push for renewable energy
development on federal lands. The wind industry wants the federal
government to raise its procurement targets for renewable energy
and issue more permits for offshore wind farms. Both want to
reinstate or create new tax credits that would boost their
industries, but that would require congressional action. And
there's a new player on K Street: the Zero Emission Transportation
Association, a group that includes Tesla, Uber and Rivian, among
others that will lobby for consumer incentives that will achieve
100% emission-free vehicle sales by 2030. The group launched this
month. Biden supports new fuel-economy standards "aimed at ensuring
100% of new sales for light- and medium-duty vehicles will be zero
emissions," according to his campaign agenda.
The changing fortunes for the renewable energy sector under
Biden are already coming into view: Renewable companies have seen
their stocks rise following Biden's win, and General Motors this
week dropped its alliance with the Trump administration on
California's fuel economy rules as they pour billions into electric
vehicles.
SEN. MARCO RUBIO SAYS he will keep pushing for broader sanctions
on imports from China's Xinjiang province over China's treatment of
Uighur Muslims even if legislation is stalled until after Biden's
inauguration. A measure that would require companies to show "clear
and convincing evidence" imports aren't made with forced labor
sailed through the House 406-3 in September. A companion bill is
held up over "technical language issues," the Florida Republican
told The Wall Street Journal, plus the jam-up of legislation that
may come during this lame-duck session.
The White House is also looking at a tougher ban, but Rubio says
a law is necessary "to provide stability long-term." Apparel and
other industries are lobbying against such measures. Looking beyond
the lame-duck, Rubio has been initially critical of Biden's picks
for his foreign policy and national security teams, saying they
will leave the U.S. "dependent on China." Biden's campaign agenda
said he would "speak out against the internment camps in Xinjiang
and hold the people and companies complicit in this appalling
oppression accountable."
HIAS, a more than century-old refugee and immigrant advocacy
organization, gets a boost from Biden after years of Trump
antagonism. The nonprofit has brought many of the most prominent
immigration suits against the Trump administration, including a
continuing case in federal court over the resettlement of refugees.
This week, one of its board members, Alejandro Mayorkas, has been
selected as Biden's nominee to run the Department of Homeland
Security.
HIAS praised Biden's choice of Mayorkas, calling him "uniquely
suited to rebuild public trust in the Department of Homeland
Security" as a former refugee himself and as the architect of the
Obama administration's Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals
program. The litigation over refugee resettlement, based on a Trump
executive order, will likely end after Biden is sworn in and is
expected to rescind the policy allowing states and local
governments to refuse to accept refugees.
GROVER CLEVELAND, the only U.S. president to serve
nonconsecutive terms in office, gets extra attention following
Trump's election loss and reports that he would consider running
again in 2024. Google searches for Cleveland hit a 12-month high in
the week following the election. Interest in the 1876 election
between Rutherford B. Hayes and Samuel J. Tilden -- widely
considered one of the two most disputed elections ever, along with
the 2000 Bush vs. Gore contest -- has also spiked, according to
Google search data.
TRUMP HAS VETOED only eight bills during his term in office, the
fewest of any president since Warren G. Harding, though Presidents
Obama and Bush had just 12 each in two-term presidencies. Trump is
also on track -- assuming he doesn't win another term in 2024 -- to
become the first president since Lyndon B. Johnson to never have a
veto overridden. There's a chance that could change during this
lame duck period: Trump has threatened to veto the National Defense
Authorization Act if it orders the military to rename bases named
after Confederate generals. That legislation passed the Senate
86-14 in July.
MINOR MEMOS: Four Seasons Total Landscaping, site of Trump
campaign legal team news conference, pleads with customers of its
novelty merchandise to be patient as they deal with swarm of
orders. ... Trump reflects on the existential dread of being a
turkey in November: "Thanksgiving is a very special day for
turkeys, but not a very good one when you think about it."...
Louisiana-born nominee for ambassador to the United Nations unveils
her doctrine of "Gumbo Diplomacy."
Write to Gabriel T. Rubin at gabriel.rubin@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 27, 2020 05:44 ET (10:44 GMT)
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