{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://mcbride.house.gov/media/press-releases/mcbride-questions-under-secretary-science-trumps-disregard-solar-and-wind", "McBride Questions Under Secretary of Science on Trump\u2019s Disregard for Solar and Wind Technology", "2025-12-10", "2025", "2025-12", "Democrat", "House", "DE", "Sarah McBride", "M001238", "mcbride.house.gov", "mcbride", "https://mcbride.house.gov/media/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2014 Today, Congresswoman Sarah McBride (D-DE) questioned Under Secretary for Science Dr. Dar\u00edo Gil during a House Science, Space, and Technology Committee hearing. McBride focused her remarks on the importance of science-driven policy, the elimination of wind and solar research in the President\u2019s Budget Request, and rising energy costs facing Delaware families.\n\nIn her opening, McBride emphasized the Department of Energy\u2019s longstanding role in advancing scientific discovery:\n\n\u201cEstablished in 1977 in response to rising prices and a growing energy crisis, the Department of Energy has long served the American people through its promotion of sound research that follows the scientific process, meaning that it does not pick winners and losers at the beginning but instead pulls on all threads, systematically, to find the best answer.\u201d\n\nShe contrasted that history with recent actions by the Administration:\n\n\u201cEarlier this year, the Administration announced that energy dominance is a priority. To accomplish this though, the Trump Administration has been spending its time pulling the plug on energy projects, rearranging DOE, and on compiling and releasing reports that counter peer-reviewed scientific findings.\u201d\n\nMcBride noted that these policy choices are directly impacting working people:\n\n\u201cDelawareans and Americans across the country are going through their mail to find that their energy bills have shot up \u2013 sometimes as much as 20 percent.\u201d\n\nMcBride Challenges Elimination of Wind and Solar R&D\n\nCiting DOE\u2019s own data on the affordability of renewables, McBride pressed Dr. Gil on the Administration\u2019s decision to submit a budget that eliminates federal support for wind and solar technology research:\n\n\u201cToday, wind and solar are among the lowest-cost and fastest sources of new electricity generation available to deploy in the U.S, and DOE\u2019s own data shows that wind and solar help to keep electricity prices lower than the national average while meeting peak demand.\u201d\n\nShe continued:\n\n\u201cI want to ask you about the decision to submit a budget request that zeroes out wind and solar technology research from the department\u2019s budget. So, as the department\u2019s principal advisor on science and technology, do you agree that the department should no longer support innovation in solar and wind technology?\u201d\n\nDr. Gil responded that DOE would continue supporting basic science that advances \u201ca wide variety of forms of energy,\u201d though he declined to defend or endorse the specific budget elimination.\n\nMcBride later asked Dr. Gil whether he agreed with a public claim by Secretary Wright that wind and solar infrastructure is \u201cworthless\u201d when the sun isn\u2019t shining or the wind isn\u2019t blowing:\n\n\u201cDo you agree with Secretary Wright\u2019s claim that \u2018wind and solar energy infrastructure is essentially worthless when it\u2019s dark outside and the wind is not blowing\u2019?\u201d\n\nAfter Dr. Gil declined to directly support the statement, McBride concluded: \u201cRight, I\u2019ll take that as you disagree with the Secretary\u2019s remarks\u2026 I appreciate the answer, and I appreciate that I believe you are serious about investing in science and technology. I just hope the rest of the administration listens more to some of the comments that you\u2019ve made here.\u201d\n\nMcBride Calls for Evidence-Based Energy Policy\n\nMcBride closed by urging DOE to restore its commitment to scientific integrity:\n\n\u201cAs we move forward, we must recommit to policies that put evidence-based decision-making and American innovation at the forefront of our energy strategy to ensure U.S leadership in science and technology through our work at DOE.\u201d\n\nRep. McBride\u2019s full remarks and questioning are available here.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T20:09:11Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://mcbride.house.gov/media/press-releases/mcbride-questions-under-secretary-science-trumps-disregard-solar-and-wind"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.6257090028375387, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}