Karin Rives

The bill to reopen the US government could avoid further furloughs at already-struggling energy and environmental agencies. It would also delay layoffs, at least for a little while. Our take on today's big story in DC. tinyurl.com/d6v4afhj

The Trump administration wants to eliminate a greenhouse gas reporting program covering large US emitters. Companies warn the proposal will hurt US exports and raise business costs. An investor said it could erode “market confidence in US companies.” tinyurl.com/mr4cew5y

Seems we don’t!

Montgomery County, Maryland, today announced a package of nearly $8 million for food assistance and other services to help people get by. Since the Trump administration would rather Americans go hungry than release emergency funds during the shutdown. www2.montgomerycountymd.gov/mcgportalapp...

The US Department of Energy said a Michigan coal plant and Pennsylvania gas units had to continue to operate past their May 31 retirement to avoid blackouts. Our data shows the plants have been of limited use at best, while adding tens of millions to your power bills. tinyurl.com/2ww5kbad

A bar chart showing US clean energy tech investments in billions from 2020 through 2030

Renewables deal flow is ramping back up, but developers and financiers remain apprehensive about the longer-term fallout from disappearing wind and solar incentives. My latest: 🔌💡
www.spglobal.com/market-intel...

Opinion | As America fumbles, China races ahead Xi is building the future while Trump pushes tariffs and fights Harvard.

“As Washington has left friends and foes grappling with how to respond to its volley of tariffs and insults, China presents itself as a serious country with predictable, consistent policies.”

2025 has seen a significant drop in "high-priority violations" that the EPA issues under the Clean Air Act, suggesting that companies are getting a break. Such violations involve pollution that can endanger public health. tinyurl.com/b8prn5py

The Trump administration's plan to rescind the 2009 greenhouse gas endangerment finding is fraught with legal risks for oil and gas companies hoping for a regulatory break. As of this morning, EPA staff had logged 351,300 public comments on the controversial proposal.
tinyurl.com/mrxvwdbp

In a UN speech today, President Trump said that "all of these [climate] predictions were wrong".

Back in 2019 I led a research effort to digitize old climate model projections and assess how well they did. Turns out they got future warming pretty spot on!

You can’t make this stuff up.

@hausfath.bsky.social and David Keith note that geoengineering would be a temporary “Band-Aid.” But some worry that by focusing attention and funding on geoengineering — like spending billions on CCS for coal plants — we focus less on dealing with the actual problem: our dependency on fossil fuels.

Posting this for no particular reason -->

Anatomy of Two Giant Deals: The U.A.E. Got Chips. The Trump Team Got Crypto Riches.

UNREAL… Anatomy of Two Giant Deals: The U.A.E. Got Chips. The Trump Team Got Crypto Riches. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/15/u...

I listened to Ezra Klein’s show and read about Newsom’s speech. The point both Klein and especially Newsom made was that Kirk managed to connect with young, lost American men in a way Democrats have completely failed to do. He had skills and savvy. Acknowledging that isn’t whitewashing.

Opinion | What Democrats Can Learn From Charlie Kirk

”Charlie Kirk built one of the most effective youth mobilization machines in recent memory. He helped elect a president. Unless Democrats respond, the next generation of young men will belong to someone else. And the future of American democracy may go with them.” @nytimes.com

The Trump administration is censoring signs, exhibits and photos related to slavery at US national parks, The Washington Post reports. Anyone who studied 20th century European history will recognize the push to erase and rewrite history. 🤔

I never thought I’d live in a military state where people with machine guns try to intimidate people just going about their lives. These soldiers were at the NoMa-Gaullaudet station in Washington, DC, the other day. Photo courtesy of my friend Lisa.

Some good news from our (dark) corner of the world! 🌞 via ‪@ember-energy.org‬

Yes!!!

My best day of staycation this past week was biking down the Capital Crescent trail to Georgetown and Theodore Island. Reminded me of what a great city Washington, DC, is!

Social Security whistleblower resigns ‘involuntarily’ | CNN Politics Days after filing a whistleblower complaint claiming that the Department of Government Efficiency put Americans’ Social Security data at risk, the agency’s chief data officer “involuntarily” resigned.

Days after filing a whistleblower complaint claiming that DOGE put Americans’ Social Security data at risk, the agency’s chief data officer “involuntarily” resigned.

‘One Big Beautiful Bill’: Mortality from MOUD Loss Zachary Meisel’s research memo to House Speaker Mike Johnson & Majority Leader John Thune estimates excess overdoses from the One Big Beautiful Bill’s Medicaid cuts.

Let’s not lose sight of this: The Trump administration’s Medicaid cuts will deprive an estimated 156,000 Americans of treatment for opiod addiction. Researchers say it will lead to some 1,000 more fatal overdoses annually, reversing a recent decline.

ldi.upenn.edu/our-work/res...

On the same day the FDA restricted access to COVID vaccines, the CDC director was sacked and top CDC scientists are resigning.

And it’s barely been two weeks since an antivax conspiracy theorist fired 180 bullets at CDC headquarters.

None of this is making America healthier. What a disaster.

Finally, a forecast with sunny days for the foreseeable future. Dry warm days to enjoy!

It’s official: We now live in a military state where civil and constitutional rights no longer matter. Remember how this went down in Germany 90 years ago?

Support the FEMA Katrina Declaration Now! — STAND UP FOR SCIENCE

Just had a conversation with a friend about “civil courage,” or standing up for what’s right — even if it may hurt you. This is such courage. www.standupforscience.net/fema-katrina...

An analysis found that real-time monitoring of hazardous pollutants from coal-fired power plants can yield nine times higher emission rates than traditional stack tests. Power sector trade groups and electric utilities say the systems are too costly, asking the EPA for relief. tinyurl.com/4jec49d6

"For a party that talks about state rights, it's amazing how they're having such a big government approach." - Governor Wes Moore on Trump's unconstitutional ICE actions

Opinion | Trump’s Revenge Campaign, Live on Morning TV The recent F.B.I. raid on John Bolton’s home makes clear that President Trump is perverting the justice system to intimidate his critics.

In @nytopinion.nytimes.com

Through the recent FBI raid on John Bolton’s home, “the president has given all Americans reason to believe that justice is now applied selectively and unfairly,” the editorial board writes.