Trump’s attempt to crush clean energy progress not going to plan, experts say

Donald Trump and Solar Farm Near Palo Verde nuclear power plant. Composite: Getty ImagesView image in fullscreenDonald Trump and Solar Farm Near Palo Verde nuclear power plant. Composite: Getty ImagesTrump administrationTrump’s attempt to crush clean energy progress not going to plan, experts sayUS generated more power from renewables like solar and wind than gas last month in a firstOliver MilmanTue 28 Apr 2026 08.30 EDTLast modified on Tue 28 Apr 2026 09.20 EDTSharePrefer the Guardian on GoogleDonald Trump has wielded the full might of his administration to crush the progress of clean energy, which he has called a “scam” and “stupid”. But there are signs this assault is not going to plan.In March, the US generated more of its electricity from renewable sources such as solar and wind than it did via gas, the first time clean energy has surpassed the planet-heating fossil fuel for a full month nationally, according to data from the Ember thinktank.While this was just one month, it follows a record 2025 for renewable energy. The pipeline of new power coming online in the US is overwhelmingly green this year, too, with 93% of all electricity capacity added in 2026 set to come from solar, wind and batteries. Just 7% will come from the fossil fuels that are dangerously overheating our world.A line chart showing share of electricity generation in the US The undaunted pace of the renewables rollout comes as the Trump administration’s attempts to stymie the industry have floundered in court.Last week, a federal court in Massachusetts blocked a slew of Trump’s anti-renewables actions, such as barring solar and wind projects on federal land. This follows the resumption of five major offshore wind farms, a form of energy the president has long reviled as “ugly”, that the administration had ordered to halt.All of this has boosted optimism among clean energy advocates who have felt under siege during Trump’s second term.“There is no truth to the death of the clean energy industry in the United States – in fact, just the opposite,” said Peter Davidson, chief executive of Aligned Climate Capital, a clean energy investor. “That’s by essentially every metric you can look at,” he added, pointing to growing electric vehicle sales as well as the escalating deployment of renewables.Wind, solar and batteries are now far cheaper and quicker to construct than gas and coal plants, causing a market “tipping point” that Trump cannot reverse, according to Davidson.“They cannot change the trajectory,” he said. “They can try and delay it. But the battle for the generation of electricity is over and renewables and storage have won.”The clean energy industry still has to contend with an uncertain, volatile political environment as well as logjams that delay projects from being connected to a grid that still struggles to move clean power around the country. But fears of Trump-inspired destruction have somewhat receded.“I’m not nearly as pessimistic as I was last summer,” said Jon Power, co-founder of CleanCapital, a solar and battery storage company. “The administration way overplayed their hand on this. They are not where the American people are and they’re having to come back to where we are.”Some cracks have seemingly started to appear in Republican hostility to clean energy, too, with the president’s chief pollster in February finding more than two-thirds of Republican voters support solar power.Leah Qusba, chief executive of GoodPower, a clean energy advocacy…

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