Energy Secretary Chris Wright visits Iowa to announce plans to end wind energy subsidies, despite Iowa generating 60% of its electricity from wind power that has become cheaper than fossil fuels. While the Trump administration pushes to revive coal and reduce renewable research funding, market forces continue driving utilities toward wind and solar.



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This week's news flash is about power and politics. And the two collided in Iowa of all places.



Iowa is farm state in the middle of America's heartland crucial for presidential hopefuls. It's the first major contest where candidates rise or fall. Smart politicians know: upset Iowa voters at your own peril.



But here's what makes this interesting. Iowa generates more electricity from wind than any other state. Sixty percent of their power comes from those spinning turbines. Wind energy has become Iowa's economic engine.



The irony? US Energy Secretary Chris Wright just visited Ames National Laboratory in Iowa. He praised the lab as a premier scientific institution. Then he dropped a bombshell: it's time to end government support for wind energy.



Wright says wind power has been subsidized for thirty-three years. Time to compete without training wheels.



But here's what he didn't mention: wind energy is now one of the cheapest sources of electricity in America. Even without subsidies, renewables cost less than oil, gas, and coal.



Energy costs are everything in America. What we pay for electricity determines what we pay for everything else. Manufacturing, artificial intelligence, keeping the lights on at home.



Energy Secretary Wright talks about reindustrializing America. He wants to win the race on artificial intelligence. Stop upward pressure on electricity prices.



Those are noble goals. But here's the twist: the cheapest electricity in America comes from wind and solar power. Not oil. Not gas. Not coal.



The Lazard LCOE analysis proves it year after year. Renewable energy costs have plummeted while fossil fuel prices remain volatile.



Iowa figured this out years ago. They didn't choose wind power because they love polar bears. They chose it because it's cheap, reliable, and keeps electricity bills low.



Wright's DOE budget would slash renewable energy research by more than fifty percent. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory would lose half its funding.



But markets don't care about politics. They care about profits. And the lowest-cost energy wins every time.



Here's where the story gets complicated.