When the Democrat-majority Congress adopted the $370 billion Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), it was cheered and condemned as a massive federal intervention to accelerate a “clean energy” transition from fossil fuels to meet President Joe Biden’s plans for a carbon-free economy by 2050.
Those polar views haven’t changed since Vice President Kamala Harris—now the Democrats’ 2024 presidential candidate—cast the deciding vote in a 51–50 partisan tally on Aug. 12, 2022, to send the “New Green Deal” to Biden’s desk.
With elections on the horizon in November, the fate of the landmark IRA is on the ballot. If Republicans triumph and former President Donald Trump regains the White House in January 2025, it’s going away—quickly.
If so, some fear the proverbial baby will be tossed with the bathwater because the IRA, they say, has proven to be a boon for local governments, school districts, and small businesses in upgrading infrastructure, lowering energy costs, and generating jobs while also enhancing national security.
