AMAC Exclusive – By Thomas M. Fortescue
For many years, Californians have grown accustomed to regular and increasingly frantic annual warnings that summertime could bring power disruptions. But this is no longer just a California problem. Perhaps for the first time in our history, similar warnings are being issued across the United States. The richest, most powerful nation on earth (we are told) will no longer be able to guarantee that it can get through the summer without rolling blackouts. This used to be something Americans would be warned about experiencing in other countries. Now that country is their own.
For California politicians, the usual scapegoats for blackouts are high winds (i.e., nature), record-breaking fires (i.e., not the fault of lawmakers in Sacramento), and “climate change” (i.e., it’s your fault the lights went out). Unsurprisingly, the cost of energy in California has been increasing faster than the general rate of inflation, disproportionately harming low income workers in the state.
But now, the blackout warnings that California residents have grown accustomed to have been exported to Texas, Indiana, and many other states, which are issuing dire warnings about the possibility of blackouts. California’s grid operator expects the usual shortages this summer, especially if the fire season is as bad as last year. Likewise, the Midcontinent Independent System Operator, which oversees power in much of the Midwest, declared it could be forced to take “emergency measures” this summer due to capacity shortfalls.
According to a study by the Wall Street Journal, large, sustained power outages have greatly increased since 2000. At the turn of the century, less than two dozen major power disruptions took place. By 2020, that number was greater than 180—an increase of nearly 800%. This didn’t even include the historic outages in Texas in 2021, or the latest wildfire-induced outages in California.
One of the primary causes of this escalating crisis is an aging grid that generations of politicians have failed to address. Much of the current power distribution system was built after World War II. Some lines were even built well before that. The American Society of Civil Engineers says that 70% of America’s power distribution system is well into the second half of its expected 50-year lifespan, and they predict that by 2029, the U.S. will face a $200 billion gap in funding to update the grid.
In short, what most have considered a “California problem” is quickly becoming an America problem.
What is driving this? A big part of the problem is Democrats’ rigid demands for a complete and immediate “transition” to so-called “renewable energy.” An increasing portion of America’s power generation comes from wind and solar farms, which, as the Wall Street Journal observes, “are among the cheapest forms of power generation [but] don’t produce electricity at all times and need large batteries to store their output for later use.”
What of the other cleaner alternatives to wind and solar, such as nuclear energy? In California, Governor Newsom has said he would consider not retiring a nuclear power plant in order to keep up with energy demand. But the fact that nuclear energy—which is completely clean—could be excluded from California’s “renewable” grid is absurd. Countries like France, for example, derive approximately 70% of their energy from nuclear power. Nuclear power plants produce zero emissions and are a reliable source of power that doesn’t depend on batteries. Thus, to exclude nuclear is to openly admit that Americans will be paying drastically and needlessly higher energy prices during this “transition.”
The same is true when it comes to cars. JP Morgan, for example, is now predicting that the national average for gasoline will exceed $6 per gallon not just in California (where the state average is already above $6) but in every state of the union.
Since gas prices began to rise (long before Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, Biden’s favorite scapegoat), the Biden administration has exhibited an odd and truly tone-deaf obsession with pushing electric vehicles. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg infamously responded to concerns about high gras prices by suggesting Americans purchase electric vehicles—which, as of now, are far more expensive than the average gas-powered vehicle, and that’s assuming Americans can afford to buy a new car at all given the record-high inflation eating into their paychecks.
What’s President Biden’s answer to this catastrophe? Just recently, he said, “When it comes to gas prices, we’re going through an incredible transition that is taking place that, God willing, when it’s over, we’ll be stronger, and the world will be stronger, and less reliant on fossil fuels when this is over…This is going to be a haul. This is going to take some time.”
In other words, this is intentional. This is no accident.
No one should be shocked by this. In one of their 2020 debates, President Trump asked Biden directly, “Would you close down the oil industry?” Biden responded, “I would transition from the oil industry, yes…It is a big statement…It has to be replaced by renewable energy over time.”
To make matters worse, China dominates many aspects of the current “renewable energy” industry. For example, China produces 76% of the world’s lithium-ion batteries—the ones required to make wind and solar work—whereas the U.S. only produces 8%. China has built up a similar dominance in the solar industry, and also dominates in electric vehicle production.
So not only is the Biden administration tone-deaf and heartless with respect to the financial strains being put on Americans, but its approach all but guarantees that American adversaries like Communist China will continue to profit from the progressive effort to gut major portions of the American energy industry.
California has said it will use 100% “renewable energy” by 2045. If recent years are any indication, that means Golden State residents may soon be lighting their homes with candles and lamps for a good portion of the year. With Biden set on pursuing the same strategy for the country at large, the United States may, like California, be transformed from a state of limitless opportunities for people of all backgrounds, to one where the rich, the powerful, and the connected can impose their own virtue-signaling projects while the costs are borne by everyone else.
Thomas M. Fortescue is the pen name of a former White House official and bestselling author on topics ranging from religion and history to politics and the American founding. His pseudonym honors three heroes who together represent some of the greatest achievements of Western civilization—St. Thomas Aquinas, St. Thomas More, and Sir John Fortescue. He can be followed on Twitter @ThomasFortescue.
Reopen pipelines, fracking, drilling etc NOW
This is no longer America! Thanks Joe, how’s that red nose and your big shoes working out?
Everyone just about knows that they have blackouts in North Korea.
In Cuba, blackouts are also a regular part of life there.
And, California has had them for decades now.
Why would anyone want to continue to vote the totalitarian Party in which has designs on making cutting off such a basic necessity, in today’s day and age, a trend for an entire nation to have to unnecessarily suck up and deal with it?
HOW LONG AND HOW MUCH ABUSE WILL TAKE? THE MANIAC AND HIS COHORTS ARE LEADING US DOWN A PATH OF RUIN LOSS OF OUR LIBERTIES. WE MUST MOUNT A WRITE IN CAMPAIGN TO WASHINGTON AND TELL THEM ENOUGH IS ENOUGH. WE MUST RESPOND AT THE BALLOT BOX.
Ask PJM , the supplier of electricity to over 3.5 billion people where our energy goes.That is correct America no longer controls electricity distribution.I wonder how many politicians have stock in this massive global company?
We need to take back the House and Senate to stop this mad man and his puppet masters
I can’t wait for 2024 elections when we get a conservative American loving President.
We have a combination of IDIOTS and “COMRADES” running our government. They tout electric cars; are Pelosi, Schumer, and Lurch Kerry driving any? NO, they ride in LIMOUSINES and get 8 mpg. If we were able to switch to electric cars, do these dunces know where we get the electricity? The electric comes from power plants fueled by coal and NG. So you are NOT actually using “clean, renewable” fuel at all. You cannot just suck up the sunlight into your car’s battery!
Of course the puppet potus wants cars no working man can afford.
Serfs should take Public Transport.
Do you also think perhaps that electric cars will cure the world’s pollution problem as Joe does???
Half of the country’s electricity is still generated with Fossil Fuels – COAL – lets burn more…
Think again!!! Where will all this electricity for cars come from???
Our Power Grid is already near collapse and electric cars will put a major exclamation point on that!!
Perhaps Joe’s new “Truth” Administration can paint over his lies but these actual truths are ugly warnings of how dark and cold the future is for our children and future generations of Americans…
As the country is forced by the Democrats to adopt more and more “green initiatives” going forward, you can expect the nation’s power grid to become increasingly less reliable as time goes on. No matter what the Democrat politicians may say, you can’t repeal the laws of physics and economics. Replacing consistent, cheap and reliable natural gas, nuclear, coal and oil with intermittent and more expensive wind and solar does have real world consequences. What you’re seeing in California, I have been seeing for years in a number of European countries that adopted their version of the “Green New Deal” long before we did. All a result of the Paris Climate Accord standards that all western European leaders have signed onto and most of the rest of the world as well. Obviously both China and India were smart enough to NOT sign onto this insanity, because they don’t want their economies wrecked. President Trump wisely kept us out of this nonsense, recognizing the folly of the entire scheme, but now we have Biden and the Democrats. So we have fully embraced this nonsense and all that it entails.
Brownouts and blackouts during the summer months are commonplace in these countries. A number of energy intensive businesses have tried to cope by changing their hours of operation to work around the sporadic nature of electrical availability. There are universal rules limiting the type and use of air conditioning in summer months and heating in the winter months. It’s not unheard of for hundreds of poor elderly to die in the summer and winter months due to the unaffordability of electricity rates in these countries. The stories routinely appear in all the newspapers over there.
On average, most Europeans pay at least 3X more for electricity than we do and the costs keep on rising. So the populations of these countries adjust and cope as best as they can with all the extra costs, rules and restrictions and general instability of their nations’ power grids. That is something we will likely have to accustom ourselves to here unless the American people decide differently. I’m not holding my breath at this point.
As for the Texas winter of 2021; the comrades in washington wouldn’t allow the suppliers to bring the conventional units online. Hope we at least get to vote on Texit–then I can laugh at all this b.s.
Biden is an idiot, it takes petroleum to get the wind turbines to the areas they need to go to. It takes petroleum or rather diesel fuel to make those turbines turn. Oil, that is. This man is the biggest fool of ALL time. It also takes land to bury the idiotic things when they can no longer be used. These things are massive. Not to mention, I have panic attacks when I’m around them. I do not know why, but I do.
I hope all the Californians and electric car owners take it in the shorts. Biden is an idiot and although he is trying to win the graces of losers, he nevertheless has become the biggest joke and embarrassment this country has ever known.
It’s tragic that so much incompetence and dysfunction can be thriving in Biden’s administration. It appears that Biden and his merry man are purposely stealing from the middle class with the purpose of destroying the freedoms and opportunities that have made the United States “the land of opportunity ” for generations. If only President Trump had been a two term chief executive, our supposed Constitutional Republic would still be firing on all eight cylinders.
MORE TREASONOUS ACTS AGAINST THE AMERICAN PEOPLE.
the car didn’t replace the horse & buggy until the car was cheaper, more reliable, more efficient. Democrats want the car, heating, & cooling replaced with inefficient, expensive, undependable green energy first. while they become uber wealthy from the kickbacks from using our own damn money to support the green energy that doesn’t work! and gop goes right along because they’re getting the kickbacks, too! it’a long past tar & feathering time.
Was there suppose to be a cause in that article?
If I missed it someone explain it or show me where in the article is the cause.
It’s quite clear that the Biden Regime doesn’t care what the American people want. They, along with all the other radical left, are determined to reconstruct our country in order to increase their power and control over us. Hopefully that anticipated Red Wave will become a reality, and both conservatives and moderate Democrats will be able to get this country back on the right track. No RINOSs need apply!
Does anyone still think these forms of torture are accidental? No, they are not. Its obamas war on the middle class. It was never about equality or equity or the environment. It’s about revenge. A most hateful form of revenge. The greatest trick the devil ever did was to make people think he doesn’t exist. The greatest trick comrade obama ever did was to make the middle class think he gave a twit about them and get them to vote for him.
Theres a sickening reason why the green zealots reject nuc power and its not fear of meltdowns. Thats only the cover story. The real reason is that nuc power would work and the country could then continue more or less on its present path. These people see humanity as a sort of infection on the earth that only they are wise enough to perceive. The real goal is population control and ultimately population reduction. This will happen if they achieve their dream of banning petroleum. Folks, they have a vision and its so ugly it’s difficult to accept, but its real and driving their actions.
wind power kills golden eagles solar only works if you have batteries. 90% of all electricity comes from oil as well as thousands of other products if you get rid of oil its back to the stone age wake up america the deep state has no right to destroy our country
Cater Administration in the Michiana area had months where they shutdown businesses early, forced rationing of electricity and fuel.
This stupidity is even worse today.
Our propane prepay for this coming winter is up $1.00 per gallon. Was $1.559 last year. $2.559 this year.
I needed to get 14.5 gallons of diesel for the tractor yesterday. $77.02!!
This is STUPID
There are at least 7 primary characteristics of becoming a Socialist State. These characteristics became apparent during the Clinton administration and became clearer during the Obama-Biden administration. Now we have President Biden continuing the democratic agenda to destroy America as we have known it. All 7 characteristics are driven by the emotion of FEAR! The 7 characteristics referenced are Healthcare, now controlled by the government; Poverty increasing by the day; National Debt, increased to an unsustainable level; Gun Control the democrats continue to work on; Educational system is a disaster and we continue to have Class Warfare (both racially driven and economically driven). If our electrical power grids can’t handle the necessary power now how well will they handle multi-millions of cars being plugged in at any one time? Given the expenditures in this country by the democrats (inclusive of all the bs surrounding the Russian Hoax created by Hillary Clinton and the gang) why not just send every adult American family a coupon for a free electric SUV??? Our leaders are idiots, college-educated idiots no less, possessing ZERO common sense and wisdom! America needs to wake up! The only ZERO this country needs is the zero approval rating for this administration and the democratic party at large!
I will not down play our situation but why will we have shortages of what the GREEN REVOLUTION OR GREEN NEW DEAL” says is the “SOLUTION TO THE ISSUES??” This whole situation is a circular firing squad or some alleged ritual performed over a cupcake by some male participants.Because of certain situations we are running out of water and power in certain areas. So what is the brain/drain trust of this destructive incompetent administration doing??? New knee pads to beg the powers that be so that they can carry on with their malignant way of thinking? How are you sheep doing that “voted ” for this ship of fools? Ain’t they wonderful?? How about INFLATION? WORKING FOR YOU??
Hey, California…enjoy all those electric vehicles! They should be perfect as a converted horse trough.
If a sufficient amount of power could be generated by wind and solar, the distribution lines still could not handle it.
Generations of politicians?? These same politicians have been in power for generations, SAME PEOPLE!!
How can the most powerful man on earth be so unwise and stupid?
“In politics, nothing happens by accident. If it happens, you can bet it was planned that way.”
Franklin D. Roosevelt
And you can bet the bank that what the Biden administration has been and is doing was all planned.
It is the culmination of a more than 100 year Fabian Society/Progressive/ New World Order agenda to not just “fundamentally transform America”, but to do so to the entire world. We are on the brink of being RULED by an elitist group of people under a global oligarchy. Climate change is the current cornerstone for implementing total control over human activity. The panicdemic was the trigger to see if people would surrender their freedom and summit to unlawful, total control. Every crisis we have and are witnessing were planned and they will only get bigger and lead into unlawful controls.
Yes, the 2020 election was a fraud as was the 2016 election. The difference was they NWO fraudsters misjudged how many votes they needed to pull off the steal and they lost to Donald Trump. In 2020, they pulled out all of the stops and didn’t care if they were exposed, they were going to win at any cost. Several State’s audits have shown the fraud and have the evidence, but have also failed to decertify their elections, enough to change the 2020 election outcome. You have to ask “why not?”
MILLIONS of FAMILIES WILL DO WITHOUT CHRISTMAS FOR THEIR CHILDREN THIS YEAR THANKS TO DICTATOR Beijing biden NOT DRILLING FOR OIL and OPENING KEYSTONE PIPELINE. NOT TO MENTION MINING FOR COAL TO KEEP NATURAL GAS AT LOWER PRICE OR LOWER LIKE IT WAS UNDER PRESIDENT TRUMP WHEN WE WERE ENERGY INDEPENDENT AND FAMILIES COULD AFFORD VACATIONS and CHRISTMAS.
We MUST vote those demoncrats and others liberals out of office. They are killing this Country.
Then all of us should demand the government reimburse us for any food spoiled in our refrigerators. Also, persons with asthma have difficulty when weather is hot and humid.
“Communist China will continue to profit from the progressive effort to gut major portions of the American energy industry.”
China Owns Joe Biden & his Family and soon will own America. Stop China from buying America’s Politicians and farmlands.
If this happens I don’t doubt there WILL be a revolution! The citizens of the USA will NOT sit idly by in the dark!!! The current federal government may think they have their thumbs on us all but if this happens they will find out differently.
More failed policies hurting Citizens brought to you by the marxist democrats, the destruction of America party!
THROW THEM ALL OUT
Ruining Michigan, New York, New Jersey, California, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Minnesota…..everywhere they cheated their way into office!
VOTE IN NOVEMBER, VOTE IN NOVEMBER, VOTE IN NOVEMBER!!!!!
RED=REMOVE EVERY DEMOCRAT
It wasn’t that long ago that the Democrats demanded $15 an hour in order for those in need to support themselves and their families. I guess that liberal idea is gone and forgotten. Now we are being intimidated by outrageous energy costs to switch from fossil fuels to renewable alternatives and focusing on electric cars. Earlier this week President Biden stated it will be a difficult transition. The national grid isn’t prepared for the change, and neither is the American public. Can President Biden or Governor Newsom explain how the folks are struggling with $15 or less minimum wage are going to survive?
Until joeblow is six feet under, this will continue. Terrible comment, yes, but think about it…every tyrant in written history continued their reign of terror until death brought it to closure.
Sic Semper Tyrannis, my friends.
Prepare yourselves for the inevitable to come.
Tratior Treasonous biden and every communist in the Peoples House including All so-called Democrats .. If blackouts occur, hope they are caught walking up stairs or down stairs trip, fall, flop around the floor like fish out of water, and die a slow agonizing death.. How Many Americans have you Murdered Today Biden ? Crime, Illegal Aliens, China Selling Fentanyl to Mexican Cartel, Illegal Aliens bringing billions of doses into the United States.. Biden and Company and his Pathetic Family Sold the United States to Communist China, along with Big Tech, and the NBA… Brain Washing Kindergarten Children , Tiny Tim Tony Fucia the Minister of Death by Wuhan.. and WE DO NOTHING !!!!
Doe Ray Me Fa Q Biden
Impeach the hoodlum!
The last nuclear power plant in California will shut down in 2025 when their license expires and there are no plans for license renewal. License renewal is a process that takes several years to prepare in order to obtain federal approval. This alone represents a loss of over 2250 megawatts of baseload clean energy the state has absolutely no way of replacing. The first unit closes in 2024 and you can bank on blackouts all over the state when that happens. Their only option at this point is to burn natural gas to power small generators, which is the most inefficient use of this fossil fuel by the way, particularly if you need that electricity to charge an electric car.
God help us all.
Everything biden does causes pain to all Americans. Everything he tries to do to correct his last mistake will be his next mistake and so on. He has done nothing right or for the good of all of us, just keeps on screwing up. By the end of summer, he will be the most hated person in America (he’s almost there now) The day after election day, the remaining democrats will run him out of office and insert the “woman of color” If we all think he was bad, just wait until she takes his place.
I can only hope the first blackouts occur at the White House and all of Delaware. Give him a taste of his own medicine. What will be put on the death certificates of people who fall down stairs during one of these blackouts, etc?, “deceased due to Biden’s failures”? DHS/CMS might want to start working on getting an appropriate ICD code now, as we know how slow this administration works.
Don’t worry, CA and the rest of the blue States along with Joey will destroy the Red States. Although we have one thing correct (we are told) we are still great while Joey leads (from behind).
I keep repeating the statement mentioned in this article that those so-called ideal “renewable energy” sources will never meet the demands. Still, I get pushed back with the ‘popular premise” that our current utility companies are doing us wrong by their “overcharge increasing rates” which our government sets for us but uses the fake blame tactic to keep us from realizing what they are doing. I don’t accept rationing my usage to only 25% of my real needs. I already limit my usage to a bare minimum. Turning off my utility, during high-demand periods means I have no way to keep my food safe inside my refrigerator. Food supplies are already limited, which means I have to rely on both frozen food supplies and dry food supplies. I can deal with no lights but I need my appliances to run all the time, but when they do “brownouts/blackouts” in areas, they just turn off all power from a designated area so another area has power. Three guesses which areas have priority over another area. These same areas will never suffer power outages and have great faith in renewable energy sources. I suggest that they run entirely on the renewable energy sources they claim is so great and see the reality of their fallicity.
One thing about the “pretender in chief” is that he actually tells the American people what to expect. Such a shame America has become the “can’t do nation”. This embarrassment of a “leader” doesn’t know how to make anything happen except what the socialist/Marxists tell him will happen. One ironic thing about the rolling blackouts is that they will keep many of the new electric vehicles off the roads. That could reduce traffic and that’s a good thing for the rest of us fossil fuel burners. Let’s do everything to save everything; except the democrats dignity. It’s all almost laughable if it weren’t so tragic.
The more I know about Jackbutt Joe and his Demonrat friends, the angrier I become. It sickens me to see our country under the duress these morons have created. And you can be sure, Demonrats and the “news” media have been complicit in trying to destroy us. The wealthy, like Gates, Zuckerberg, Bezos, etc. aren’t worried. They’ll have plenty of options available to them. The news media is lying all the time and just seems to be getting away with it. Professional athletes like Lebron, who probably don’t know their butts from a hole in the ground, continue to cater to the Chinese. And Hollywood, I don’t even want to go there because my blood pressure will go off the charts!
It’s all of us are going to pay the price for all their incompetence and ridiculous flawed ideology. I have experienced a 4 day blackout several years ago. Happened when it was 94 – 96* out. That’s hot for Cleveland. I have major progressive lung issues and that was not a pleasant experience. Worst part was taking care of my 90 year old Mom and trying to make sure she was eating and hydrated and cool enough to handle it. I was just sick with worry. These idiot Demonrats talk bs but never address the problems they create. What happens to the ill and the elderly should these kind of outages occur again? Demonrats don’t care. They’re too busy trying to keep power and control over the rest of us. This country is worth fighting for. These elites in politics, sports, media, and entertainment need to be kicked to the curb. I’ll put on my spiked shoes for that!
Obviously, this person does not know what he is talking about when he says nuclear energy is 100% clean. Tell the people at 3 mile Island or Chernobyl that and they will laugh in your face!!!!! Plus for the ones that have not had any issues, they are still creating a nuclear waste that is a big problem. That is probably why they have shut down nuclear plants too!
But the main statement is true. This is planned obsolescence of all hydrocarbon power plants. And the Democrats are behind this BS 100%.
There is a coal powered plant near me that was shut down in the last few years. And I have heard of many more that have been shut down. And there have not been any new plants built to replace them.
They talk about the grid getting old and needing replaced. Do not they get paid for that every month when I pay my bill? Or is this just another thing showing that the energy industry is owned by the government already. This is just another step to the full communist takeover.
The problem is we have dumba**es making the decisions on the energy grid that do not give a crap if we have enough power or not. They just see $$$ with the prices going up. They are managers, not engineers or scientists.
And then they tell us to buy electric cars. Where is all of the electricity coming from to charge these cars? This seems not like a ploy to save the environment, but a ploy to make us less mobile. I bet the military will not have any trouble getting fuel!
And this is all at the same time China
People, we need to open our eyes! The next election is critical. If Conservatives do not have huge gains in the House and Senate, we will soon be totally communist!
I guess the main dumba** is Joe B and his puppeteers!
This is not about anything but CONTROL!!!