There’s a lot of misleading language out there about the climate and energy policies that the new Trump administration and anti-environmental leadership in Congress plan to pursue. It can be confusing and frustrating to determine what elected and industry officials are really trying to say. Here are some top phrases that corporate polluters and their lawmaker allies love, what they actually mean, and the impact their agenda will have on communities and the climate in the coming years.

Example: “We will work to restore American energy dominance. Not just our energy security, but energy dominance.” (Republican Senator John Thune)

Translation: Big Polluters and their elected allies claim that to attain global economic dominance, the U.S. must abandon clean energy and environmental safeguards. Instead, they want to focus solely on increasing the fossil fuel production and exports that pad their bottom line. If electeds truly wanted to achieve “energy dominance,” not just help out their Big Oil donors, they would not try to ban wind and solar and rather double down on giving consumers more affordable, rapidly deployed, clean, renewable energy – like wind and solar.

What this means for climate: Of course, increasing production of polluting fossil fuels can only mean one thing: more pollution. The incoming administration is trying to ban clean, renewable energy sources that are good for the climate, the economy, and public health in favor of dirty energy sources that will exacerbate the climate crisis (and make their rich donors even richer). This additional pollution will be heavily focused in areas that already experience a disproportionate amount air pollution, often communities of color and communities with low-wealth.

Example: “Today I will declare a national energy emergency. We will ‘drill, baby, drill.’” (President Trump)

Translation: One of Trump’s Day 1 actions was to declare a “national energy emergency” claiming that the U.S. is facing “insufficient energy production.” This declaration is nothing more than a thinly-veiled excuse to amp up fossil fuel production in the U.S., which can be attempted under a national emergency declaration. Let us be clear: the U.S. is not facing “insufficient energy production” and is in fact currently producing more energy than at any point in our history. We need to keep accelerating the buildout of new wind, solar, and advanced geothermal projects, but the Trump administration is trying to shut down those more affordable, faster to complete forms of electricity.

What this means for climate: Declaring an energy emergency gives the executive branch more power to expand oil and gas drilling, pipelines, and export facilities more rapidly than they could otherwise. Not only will this drive up emissions, but it will also increase profits for oil and gas billionaires while driving up energy prices for the rest of us. 

Example: “We have more liquid gold under our feet than Saudi Arabia, more than Russia.” (President Trump)

Translation: The stuff that makes Big Oil rich: fossil fuels, oil and gas.

What this means for climate: Using the term “liquid gold” frames polluting energy sources of oil and gas solely by economic value to an already wealthy industry (not consumers!), while obscuring the negative environmental and public health impacts of burning fossil fuels.

Example: “We know that we have the technology to deliver clean coal.” (Interior Secretary Doug Burgum)

Translation: Greenwashing at its finest. Coal is the most polluting energy source there is.

What this means for climate: There is nothing clean about coal, and the technologies Burgum and others claim make it “clean” are unproven on a large scale, and most importantly – are extremely expensive. Promoting use of coal as a “clean” energy source will result in skyrocketing costs and pollution. Real clean energy, like solar, wind, or geothermal, is the lowest cost electricity resource being added to our grids – in part because its fuel is free and abundant.

Example: “We have the incredible opportunity to solve some of the most pressing issues facing our communities by streamlining permitting for crucial infrastructure projects and eliminating bureaucratic red tape that is holding back development of our domestic energy and mineral resources.” (Representative Bruce Westerman (R-AR))

Translation: Allowing polluters to disregard environmental safeguards and input from the communities they want to work in so they can pollute more and faster without accountability.

What this means for climate: Federal environmental regulations provide critical protections for the environment and our communities. Eliminating these safeguards would leave our ecosystems and natural resources vulnerable to extractive processes like mining and drilling and result in increased greenhouse gas emissions. Newly permitted dirty energy projects are likely to be located in or near environmental justice and frontline communities that experience higher than average pollution levels, exacerbating the negative health impacts they already experience.

Example: “We will frack, frack, frack and drill, baby, drill.” (President Trump)

Translation: Means what it says and says what it means: unfettered, unregulated drilling without regard for people or the planet.

What this means for climate: Not only does the “drill, baby, drill” plan entail ramping up fossil fuel production, which will increase carbon emissions and exacerbate the climate crisis, but polluters hope to do so on protected federal lands for pennies on the dollar. This will disrupt ecosystems and wildlife habitats, not to mention destroy landscapes that hold cultural significance to Tribal nations across the country.

Example: “Unleashing American energy to compete against adversaries is top of mind.” (Republican Representative August Pfluger)

Translation: Unleashing polluters while banning clean energy.

What this means for climate: Ramping up fossil fuel production while at the same time rolling back cheaper, faster clean energy will mean a much larger proportion of energy in the U.S. will come from polluting sources that will cost more and take longer to come online. With energy demand increasing, meeting that demand using fossil fuels alone will mean a huge increase in prices families pay for energy and carbon emissions that worsen the climate crisis and are detrimental to public health.

Our communities deserve clean air, clean water, and affordable, reliable energy. We were on track to make that happen with the clean energy advancements made by the previous administration. Unfortunately, instead of continuing down that path, the Trump administration has shifted to a fossil-fuels-only plan, with unfettered oil and gas exports, while working to ban cleaner, less expensive energy sources like wind and solar.

To prop up this agenda, polluters and their elected allies are using deceptive and misleading language to make their fossil fuel agenda sound appealing. Don’t be fooled: the Trump administration’s energy agenda will raise energy prices, harm public health, and worsen the climate crisis.

Have another polluter term you want translated? Let us know on Instagram and Bluesky, and join LCV in our fight against misinformation and to protect people and the planet.