Right Wing Wokeism - 344

China Must Be Thrilled

Donald Trump was elected to manage borders and curb left-wing wokeism, but his right-wing wokeism—attacking electric vehicles and renewable energy because they don't fit MAGA ideology—is equally senseless and against national interests.

Ironically, his own base benefits from renewables. The five states with the largest share of wind power are red states, generating at least a third of their power from wind. This is about geography, not politics. Rural America has vast solar and wind potential and is already capitalizing on it, regardless of voting patterns.

More critically, Trump's "drill, baby, drill" approach at a time when artificial intelligence, electric vehicles, and autonomous technology are advancing will not make America great again. Instead, it risks making China great again.

Trump once boasted about sending Americans to Mars. The real question is whether a Chinese astronaut will greet them there, asking, "What took you so long?"

China, despite its economic issues, understands the importance of large-scale industrial strategy. It doesn’t label energy sources as liberal or conservative; it prioritizes efficiency, abundance, and cost-effectiveness. That’s why China has invested massively in renewables, knowing they are crucial to long-term economic dominance.

The contrast between the U.S. and China became even starker when, on the day of Trump’s inaugural, the Chinese AI startup DeepSeek unveiled its flagship AI model, R1, showcasing advanced reasoning without relying on restricted U.S. chips. China is refining its AI capabilities while America debates whether electric cars are "manly" enough.

The interconnection between AI, energy, and electric vehicles is something Trump’s policies fail to grasp. AI is rapidly improving, making autonomous electric vehicles more efficient. However, AI demands massive amounts of energy. To sustain this progress without exacerbating climate change, renewable energy is crucial. The stronger America’s renewable infrastructure, the more competitive our AI and EV industries will be.

In the 21st century, the dominant global power will be the one with the most efficient ecosystem of AI, EVs, batteries, and clean energy. Just as coal, steel, oil, and combustion engines defined past industrial supremacy, these technologies will define the future. If America neglects clean energy for ideological reasons, it will lose this race.

One example of this intersection is Waymo’s self-driving taxis in San Francisco. These vehicles—like future autonomous buses and trucks—must be electric and satellite-connected. Electric motors respond instantly, which is essential for safety in autonomous driving. These cars are essentially smartphones on wheels, a concept that Chinese companies understand far better than most U.S. automakers.

China’s tech giants, such as Xiaomi, Huawei, and battery-maker BYD, are redefining the auto industry by integrating AI and digital experiences. BYD alone is investing $14 billion into autonomous driving technology, while General Motors shut down its autonomous taxi project, Cruise, to focus on stock buybacks. That’s a losing strategy.

The ideal EV is powered by renewable energy—wind, solar, hydro, or nuclear. China has embraced an "all-of-the-above" strategy, similar to the one promoted by Biden, Obama, and even George W. Bush. Biden has overseen record oil production while simultaneously expanding wind, solar, hydrogen, fusion, and nuclear power. The goal is to dominate the AI-mobility-battery ecosystem that will drive 21st-century innovation.

Then came Trump. He declared a "national energy emergency" because AI companies warned they lacked enough power for their data centers. His response? Doubling down on fossil fuels, freezing incentives for wind and solar, and promoting massive, electricity-hungry data centers. That’s not an energy strategy—it’s a right-wing woke mess.

Wind and solar now provide over 14% of U.S. electricity. Yet Trump wants to block planned wind projects while claiming to support American manufacturing. He decries an energy crisis while undermining solutions that could power homes and businesses.

Carl Pope, former Sierra Club chairman, likened Trump’s approach to “ringing a fire alarm and then laying off the fire department.”

This strategy defies logic and weakens America’s competitiveness in the key industrial sectors of AI, autonomous vehicles, batteries, and clean power. In 2023, China’s clean-energy investment surged by 40% to $890 billion—almost as much as the total global investment in fossil fuels. China prioritizing solar power, EVs, and batteries—the very technologies Trump seeks to undermine in the U.S.

If Trump continues this path, he will indeed make America "exceptional"—just not in the way he intends.

China must be thrilled!

Reference: The writings of Thomas Friedman

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