Nothing says leadership like turning the country into a climate punchline.
Trump’s second term has already made one thing clear—he didn’t learn a thing from the first. Within days of taking office, he pulled the U.S. out of the Paris Agreement, declared a bogus “energy emergency,” and started tearing through environmental regulations like it’s a race to the bottom. This isn’t mismanagement. It’s deliberate, hostile, and dangerous.
His administration is packed with fossil fuel allies, science-deniers, and corporate loyalists who treat public health like a joke and the climate crisis like a hoax. While the world scrambles to avoid catastrophe, Trump is dragging the country backwards—mocking global cooperation, greenlighting pollution, and cutting agencies meant to protect people. This isn’t just bad policy. It’s climate vandalism. And it’s making the U.S. look like a rogue state in a world that’s running out of time.
1. Pulling out of the Paris Agreement—again—makes the U.S. a global outlier.
Trump wasted no time withdrawing from the Paris Agreement in his first week back in office. According to Reuters, this decision sent a clear message: the U.S. isn’t just stepping back from climate leadership—it’s walking away entirely. While the rest of the world doubles down on climate action, Trump’s administration focuses on fossil fuel expansion and deregulation.
This second withdrawal damages global trust even more than the first. International allies are frustrated, and climate negotiations are already shifting to work around U.S. absence. Back home, states and cities that built local climate strategies under Biden now face uncertainty. The science hasn’t changed, but the politics have, and Trump is making sure climate denial stays loud, proud, and official.
2. Declaring an “energy emergency” gives fossil fuels a fast track.
In January 2025, Trump declared a national energy emergency—one that had nothing to do with supply shortages and everything to do with deregulation. The White House confirmed the order rolled back key permitting rules to fast-track fossil fuel projects on both public and private land. Environmental reviews are being sidelined, and fossil fuel companies are getting everything they’ve ever asked for.
Framed as a move for “energy independence,” the order is really about removing guardrails and handing polluters a blank check. It’s an open invitation to drill, mine, and frack with impunity. Meanwhile, clean energy industries are left to compete on a rigged playing field. This isn’t energy policy—it’s sabotage dressed up as patriotism, and it locks the U.S. into more emissions just as the climate crisis accelerates.
3. Slashing clean energy funding buries progress to protect the past.
Trump’s latest budget proposal guts renewable energy funding across the board. Solar, wind, energy efficiency programs—all on the chopping block. As reported by Jennifer McDermott at the Associated Press, the Trump administration has already canceled two major clean energy grants and is now reviewing nearly 300 others, signaling a broader rollback of climate investments.
The move isn’t about saving money. It’s about kneecapping the competition. While fossil fuel companies get handouts and deregulation, clean energy startups are being starved of support. It’s a deliberate attempt to freeze progress and keep the country hooked on outdated, dirty energy. At a time when climate innovation should be front and center, Trump is throwing it under the bus to protect his donors and score political points.
4. Gutted EPA programs leave communities defenseless.
The Trump administration is hacking away at the EPA—again. More than a thousand staff positions are being eliminated, $14 billion in environmental grants are getting slashed, and key research departments are being dismantled. The agency that’s supposed to protect air, water, and public health is being hollowed out from the inside.
This isn’t just about rolling back red tape. It’s about making sure pollution gets a free pass. Communities that rely on EPA enforcement—especially low-income neighborhoods and communities of color—are being abandoned. With fewer staff, weaker oversight, and no political will, toxic industries are now free to pollute without fear of consequences. And the public is left breathing the fallout.
5. Fast-tracked pipelines sacrifice land, water, and people.
Trump’s love affair with oil infrastructure is back in full swing. The administration is once again pushing through massive pipeline projects with little to no environmental review. Indigenous lands, water supplies, and endangered ecosystems are all back on the chopping block to make way for fossil fuel expansion.
This isn’t about energy security—it’s about rewarding loyal donors. Just like in his first term, Trump is using executive orders to sidestep legal challenges and greenlight construction before the public can push back.
Pipelines like Keystone XL may have been blocked before, but this new round of fast-tracking shows he’s ready to bring them all back if he can. The damage to land, water, and tribal sovereignty? Apparently that’s just collateral.
6. Fuel efficiency rollbacks lock in years of extra emissions.
Fuel economy standards were one of the country’s most effective tools for cutting emissions. Trump is trying to dismantle them again. His new rule strips back targets for cars and trucks, giving automakers more room to pollute while weakening consumer protections at the same time.
This rollback doesn’t just hurt the climate—it hits Americans at the pump. Drivers will spend more on gas, and automakers will fall further behind in a global market that’s rapidly shifting toward electric vehicles. It’s a policy with no upside unless you’re in the oil business. And that’s the point. Trump isn’t interested in smart, future-proof transportation. He’s interested in making sure fossil fuels stay king, even if it means burning through progress to do it.
7. Killing EV incentives keeps the U.S. stuck in the slow lane.
Electric vehicles were finally going mainstream—then Trump got back in office. Now, federal EV tax credits are being gutted, subsidies are being redirected toward fossil fuels, and plans for a national charging network are dead in the water. It’s a strategic chokehold on progress dressed up as “consumer choice.”
The administration claims it’s protecting freedom from “woke car mandates,” but all it’s really doing is protecting Big Oil. Car companies are being forced to slow down production shifts, while consumers are left with fewer affordable EV options. Meanwhile, countries like China are dominating the EV market, leaving the U.S. behind with outdated infrastructure and higher emissions. Trump isn’t just ignoring clean transportation—he’s actively strangling it to score political points and keep the oil lobby happy.
8. Public lands are being sold off to the highest bidder—again.
Trump has wasted no time turning public lands into private playgrounds for polluters. Since January 2025, millions of acres have been fast-tracked for oil, gas, and mining leases. Many of these lands include culturally significant sites, fragile ecosystems, or previously protected wilderness. That hasn’t stopped his administration from treating them like a clearance sale.
Auctions are happening at breakneck speed, often with limited public notice and zero environmental review. Entire regions are being carved up for pennies per acre, and once the damage is done, it’s irreversible. Indigenous communities, environmental advocates, and local residents are being shut out of the process entirely. This isn’t about “energy independence”—it’s about handing favors to fossil fuel donors while gutting the country’s natural heritage in real time.
9. Climate science is being buried beneath a pile of propaganda.
In Trump’s second term, the war on climate science is more aggressive than ever. Reports are being delayed or rewritten to soften their conclusions. Public-facing climate resources on agency websites have quietly vanished. Key scientific advisory panels are being shut down or stacked with industry-friendly figures who toe the party line.
This isn’t just censorship—it’s intentional disinformation. Scientists are being sidelined, muzzled, or forced out. Even basic research on emissions and public health is now treated like political sabotage. Trump’s administration is replacing facts with spin and forcing federal agencies to prioritize optics over accuracy.
The long-term result? A misinformed public, underprepared communities, and a government that’s flying blind through a climate emergency it refuses to name.
10. Disaster relief is being politicized as climate chaos worsens.
As climate disasters worsen, Trump is turning emergency response into a political tool. Blue states facing wildfires, floods, or hurricanes are seeing delayed disaster declarations and slower federal aid. Simultaneously, funding for FEMA and climate adaptation programs is being slashed—leaving vulnerable communities even more exposed.
This weaponization of disaster relief isn’t subtle. Republican-led states are fast-tracked for help, while Democratic ones are publicly shamed and held back. Local officials are being forced to play politics just to secure basic support. Meanwhile, frontline communities—especially low-income and marginalized ones—are left to fend for themselves. It’s a toxic mix of partisanship and negligence in the face of growing climate chaos, and it’s putting lives on the line for the sake of headlines.
11. International cooperation is getting torched for political theater.
Trump isn’t just ignoring global climate efforts—he’s actively undermining them. At recent climate summits, the U.S. delegation has pushed to weaken agreements, block funding for developing countries, and insert pro-fossil fuel language into official statements. Other nations are learning to move forward without American leadership—and in some cases, in spite of it.
This behavior isn’t about strategy—it’s about showmanship. Trump gets applause at home for sticking it to “global elites,” but on the world stage, the U.S. is increasingly viewed as an obstructionist liability. Diplomatic relationships are fraying, and trust is wearing thin. While climate action demands coordination and urgency, Trump is busy burning bridges to keep his political brand alive. It’s reckless, embarrassing, and deeply damaging in the long run.
12. Polluters are being rewarded instead of held accountable.
Under Trump, environmental enforcement has collapsed. Fines for corporate polluters have plummeted, regulatory inspections are down, and key protections under the Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act are being dismantled. Companies are now being allowed to self-report violations with no real consequences—if they’re asked to report at all.
This isn’t just deregulation—it’s a green light for abuse. Communities near refineries, landfills, and chemical plants are already seeing the effects: more toxic exposure, more health problems, and no one answering the phone at the EPA.
Trump is turning the nation’s environmental watchdog into a lapdog. It’s a policy of abandonment wrapped in pro-business rhetoric, and it leaves everyday Americans footing the bill with their health.
13. Climate denial is back in charge, and it’s louder than ever.
Trump’s second term has made one thing unmistakably clear—climate denial is no longer fringe, it’s federal policy. From the White House podium to the EPA’s leadership, officials are downplaying climate threats, mocking science, and treating clean energy like a threat to American identity. Facts aren’t just being ignored—they’re being aggressively attacked.
Agencies have been ordered to avoid “politicized” climate language, and staff are being pressured to scrub references from internal documents. Public education campaigns have been paused, slashed, or redirected to focus on “energy dominance” instead. This manufactured ignorance is creating real-world consequences. As the climate crisis accelerates, the people in charge are choosing to lie, distract, and delay—leaving the rest of us to deal with the fallout.