Analysis and modeling show middle class and blue collar Americans will be broke — to use one word — under Minnesota Governor Tim Walz’s energy policies.
Vice President and Democrat presidential candidate Kamala Harris selected Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as her running mate. Axios reports that the Harris campaign was impressed by Walz’s “policy victories” for the middle class and his ability to “crystalize the threat posed by pro-Trump Republicans in one viral word — “weird” — is a huge reason he skyrocketed to the top of Harris’ VP shortlist in just two weeks.”
AOER has one word for Walz’s energy policy — broke. That’s the financial condition Walz will leave middle class and blue collar Americans. AOER’s VP of Research, Isaac Orr, and Research Director Mitch Rolling have spent the last six years analyzing and modeling every aspect of Walz’s energy policy. Also known as the Energy Bad Boys (EBB) on Substack, Orr and Rolling highlighted a few of Walz’s most egregious attempts to wreak havoc on Minnesota residents, the economy, and grid reliability:
- Gas Tax: Attempted a 70 percent increase that “would have cost the average Minnesota family an additional $207 per year and made Minnesota’s gas tax the 4th highest in the nation.” Public outcry is the only thing that stopped him.
- Enbridge Line 3 oil pipeline: Walz “follows the science” until the Sierra Club tells him not to. 2018 gubernatorial candidate Walz stated support for “replacing the corroding Enbridge Line 3 oil pipeline, which was built in 1968 and was operating at half capacity due to safety concerns.” In 2019, Governor Walz ignored the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission’s unanimous support to replace the pipeline and caved to special interest groups and delayed replacement. According to the EBB, “delaying the replacement of a corroded oil pipeline that has been under review for four years based on subjective criteria of needing a ‘social permit,’ in addition to a building permit, is the exact opposite of ‘following the science.’ In fact, ‘the science’ clearly showed that delaying the replacement of this pipeline presented a more real and present danger to the environment than allowing for a newer, safer pipeline to be placed into service.”
- Wind and solar mandates. Walz campaigned on 50 percent wind and solar by 2030. As governor, he moved the goalposts to 100 percent by 2050.
- Skyrocketing utility bills: Walz’s wind and solar mandates will cost $313 billion through 2050. Minnesota families’ utility bills will “increase by an average of $1,642 per year, or $136 per month, reaching an additional $2,934 by 2040.”
- Blackout Bill: The EBB tagged Walz’s 100 percent carbon-free by 2050 mandate as the “Blackout Bill” because residents can expect up to 55 hours of blackouts during the cold Minnesota winter.
There’s plenty more, including electric vehicle mandates, the cost to industrial ratepayers, and low-carbon fuel standards. Orr and Rolling conclude, “The selection of Tim Walz as the Vice Presidential candidate has been touted as a way for the Harris campaign to appeal to rural Midwestern voters, but his track record on energy is more aligned with voters in San Francisco than St. Cloud.”
Bottom line: Walz will betray the very voters he’s tasked with securing for Harris. His energy policies will leave them broke.
Read the entire list and subscribe to the Energy Bad Boys here.