Activist local governments should not be regulators of energy markets
In a world of war, America’s first duty is keeping its lights on.
As the world economy grapples with the fallout of the war in Iran, lawfare by American climate activists threatens significant damage to the nation’s domestic energy industry — and with it national security.
In the name of climate leadership, states are passing laws and filing lawsuits aimed at inflicting massive penalties on energy companies. But in two pending cases, the Supreme Court can establish federal supremacy over energy and climate change policy and beat back local interference in national security.
The Founding Fathers designed the Constitution to prevent states from undermining a unified, national foreign and national security policy. Control over war, treaty, commerce and diplomacy belong to the national government alone. The Supreme Court has repeatedly affirmed that principle and struck down state laws that interfere with the nation’s dealings abroad.
In Suncor v. Boulder County, which the Supreme Court agreed to hear in February, Colorado officials have invoked a sweeping legal theory that would essentially make states the arbiters of international climate policy. The theory states that energy companies are responsible for billions of dollars in damages because they supposedly concealed the link between fossil fuel use and greenhouse gas emissions all over the world.
The supreme courts of Colorado and Hawaii allowed these lawsuits to move forward, while the Maryland Supreme Court did not. Now, the U.S. Supreme Court is poised to rule on whether the state laws allowing these lawsuits violate federal supremacy on interstate commerce and foreign affairs.
Politics
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Is American Nationalism Still Creed-able?
We are not there now, but there is reason to worry that the United States is in danger, if we are not careful, of ceasing to be a nation with the principles of 1776 at its core.
National Civitas Institute Poll: Americans are Anxious and Frustrated, Creating a Challenging Environment for Leaders
The poll reveals a deeply pessimistic American electorate, with a majority convinced the nation is on the wrong track.
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Can Britain’s Next Prime Minister Escape the Net Zero Trap?
Britain has burned through five Prime Ministers and is paying some of the highest electricity prices in the world.
The Scanner at the Gate: Europe’s China Policy Litmus Test
China’s industrial policy is entering Europe through public procurement—and reshaping sensitive markets from within.
Confronting the New Antisemitism
"The postwar effort 'to rebrand Judaism as a religion' has made it impossible for American Jews to understand what they are facing today, because what we are facing today is an attack on the idea of Jewish peoplehood.”
“Democratic” Socialism Is Undemocratic
By promoting class hatred, suppressing private initiative, and seeking enhanced control of our lives, today’s democratic socialists undermine patriotism and individual initiative—two qualities that have long distinguished the United States from other major nations.
