Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’ Worrisome Energy Agenda

June 28, 2018

A recent ThinkProgress article gushes over some democrat primary winners’ embrace of the radical green movement. Campaign rhetoric is meant to appeal to voters; it does not need to appeal to common sense.

Take, for example, the pledge of newcomer Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to make America “100% free of fossil fuels by 2035.” Remarkable what a congressman can do! And how will this be accomplished? “Electrification of vehicles, sustainable home heating, distributed rooftop solar generation, and the conversion of the power grid to zero-emissions energy sources.”

Pretty easy, right?

One problem: the largest solar farm in the nation (Topaz Solar Farm in California) generated 1.2 billion kilowatt hours of power last year. The Congressional nominee lives in a city that uses 1.8 billion kilowatt hours of power on the subway system alone. Let’s put that in simpler terms: the largest solar farm in America could not even power the New York City subway. And we are going to go “100% free of fossil fuels by 2035” …how?

Simply doubling down on solar is not the answer, as New York does not get the sun exposure that Southern California enjoys. Nor does it have the space, even if every single building were covered in solar panels. Wind is not the answer, as New York does not see the kind of steady wind experienced on the coast of Maryland (where residents are pushing efforts to ban the unsightly wind turbines)

What America needs is ENERGY. Inexpensive, reliable, abundant, domestic energy that comes from all forms of fossil, geothermal, bio, renewable, and nuclear sources. Rhetoric is fine for a campaign, but we must consider the reality of maintaining and growing the quality of life we enjoy in America. New Yorkers, and Americans in general, will not settle for less despite all the hot air coming from the campaign trail.