Yesterday I published an article about the growing group of Republicans and business leaders who are rallying to support the clean energy tax credits that President Biden signed into law in 2022 as part of the Inflation Reduction Act.

At the center of that push is Andrew Garbarino, a House Republican from New York. He finds himself in the awkward position of fighting to protect a program that President Trump and others in Congress have vowed to eliminate in their efforts to roll back climate regulations and cut government spending.

Garbarino and 20 other Republican representatives last week sent a letter defending the tax credits to Representative Jason Smith of Missouri, the chairman of the Ways and Means Committee.

I had spoken with Garbarino for the story and wanted to share more of our conversation, including why he believes the tax credits won’t get fully repealed. He and other Republicans are trying to fend off factions from their own party, including the House Freedom Caucus, while trying to reframe the credits as pro-Trump policy.

Making the case to the GOP

Garbarino starts his pitch to fellow conservatives by trying to separate the tax credits from the Inflation Reduction Act, which was deeply unpopular with Republicans.

“I voted against the I.R.A., and there were policies in there that I didn’t agree with, just like every other Republican,” he said.