Trump Is Now Bribing Energy Companies With Your Taxpayer Dollars

MAGA’s numbers going solar highlight this distinction. Kellyanne Conway’s memo to American Energy First, detailing the results of the poll she commissioned, concludes by saying that “solar energy, unlike wind energy, is not viewed through a partisan lens; it is seen as a means to an end.” Since the survey summary does not document any questions about wind energy, it is unclear where this conclusion came from. Independent survey finds only one slightly a larger gap between Democrats and Republicans on wind than on solar: in 2024, Pew found a 27-point gap for solar versus a 32-point gap for wind, and Yale/George Mason, looking at party extremes, found a 51-point gap between liberal Democrats and conservative Republicans on solar, versus a 57-point gap for wind.

The U.S. solar industry, however, is about twice as large as the U.S. wind industry in terms of installed capacity, and also larger in terms of market value. New solar installations are generally less financially and logistically burdensome than new wind installations, and many are planned for the coming years. The solar industry could have both more money to lobby and better statistics to deploy in its favor.

There is also another factor that could accelerate this political pivot. Conway’s poll, while billed as showing “Trump voters'” thoughts on solar power, was not an interview all Trump voters. Instead, it surveyed Trump voters in five specific states: Indiana, Ohio, Arizona, Florida and Texas. The latter three are among the top five states in terms of currently installed solar capacity, with Texas being “the fastest growing solar economy,” according to the Solar Energy Industries Association. Arizona is the third fastest-growing solar economy, Indiana is fourth, Florida is seventh, and Ohio is eighth. SEIA also reports that Texas stands to lose 51 percent (162 projects) of new solar capacity due to new federal policies, Arizona 53 percent (15 projects), Ohio 40 percent (14 projects) and Indiana 35 percent (10 projects).