By Danielle Deiseroth

On his first day in office, President Donald Trump issued an executive order stating it is “in the national interest to unleash America’s affordable and reliable energy and natural resources.” Yet, in a paradoxical decision made later that same day, the Trump administration issued another order dealing a devastating blow to America’s wind energy industry by instituting withdrawals and roadblocks to onshore and offshore permits.  

Keen observers of the energy industry immediately recognized the contradiction between Trump claiming to usher in a new era of American energy dominance while simultaneously blocking one of the nation’s fastest-growing and cheapest sources of energy. 

But, taking a big step back: We know that voters strongly favor the U.S. investing more in renewable energy, but do they also know that renewable energy is cheap energy?

New research from Data for Progress confirms that a plurality of voters correctly recognize that renewables are the cheapest form of energy. When asked to identify what they think is the cheapest form of energy, 45% of voters say either solar or wind. When we followed up with these voters and asked them what they think the second cheapest form of energy is, again, nearly half say either solar or wind:

For clean energy advocates, who have spent years championing the economic benefits of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) as clean energy projects slowly come online, these executive orders provide a key opening to convince voters that Trump’s actions are in direct opposition to lowering costs for American families — which voters said was their top issue throughout the 2024 election cycle. 

And it’s not just energy costs: The Trump administration’s hostility toward the clean energy industry and its overtures to kill key provisions of the IRA have stalled or cancelled the creation of nearly 50,000 jobs, according to new research from Climate Power.

As the future of the IRA and the U.S. renewable energy industry hangs in the balance, clean energy advocates can and should capitalize on the opportunity to craft an economic message that can actually land with voters: Invest in cheap and plentiful domestic clean energy sources that can lower utility costs for Americans while reducing our dependence on fossil fuels.

Danielle Deiseroth (@danielledeis)is the Executive Director at Data for Progress.