Thune Is Big Fan of Wind Power, an Energy Source Trump Hates

(Bloomberg) -- Donald Trump hates wind power. John Thune may be poised to protect it.

Thune, elected Senate majority leader Wednesday by Republicans, has long championed wind energy, which provides about 55% of electricity in his home state of South Dakota. His powerful new role puts him in position to prevent Congress from repealing incentives that have made all those wind farms possible.

While wind power has boomed across much of the US, it still depends heavily on tax credits extended by President Joe Biden’s signature climate law.

“He’s been a long-time advocate of renewable energy, especially wind development and biofuels,” said Todd Foley, a former senior vice president at the American Council on Renewable Energy, which honored Thune for his support of renewable power in 2019. 

Trump, who has falsely claimed wind turbines cause cancer, has vowed to push Congress to unwind key parts of the Inflation Reduction Act, which includes billions in incentives not just for wind but also for solar, biofuels and other clean-energy sources. Some of those credits are popular with Republicans, and it remains to be seen how many will support Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson in an effort to repeal them.

One place where Trump has added leverage when it comes to wind farms is the ocean. Offshore wind lease sales are run by the Interior Department, which is directly under Trump’s purview. He has vowed to issue an executive order targeting offshore wind on his first day in office. 

Representatives of Thune didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

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