'That is what makes me mad': Trump-loving ranchers beg Republicans to back off

The Guardian reports a GOP intraparty fight is breaking out in Texas between struggling Texas ranchers and the lumbering might of big oil.

Former Republican state lawmaker, rancher and a steadfast Donald Trump supporter John Davis says he’s become horrified at his party’s assault upon clean energy, which is exploding in Texas as local oil fields run dry. The Guardian reports a volley of state bills pushed by the legislature’s Republican majority is threatening to reverse the state’s position as a clean energy superpower. Many of these bills, like SB819, call for the “police power of the state” to suppress new wind and solar projects by requiring onerous permits not required for gas, coal or nuclear plants.

“I’ve heard from many constituents with valid concerns regarding the reckless installation of these facilities,” said Lois Kolkhorst, a Texas state senator and a SB819 sponsor who considers herself a “lifelong wildlife conservationist.”

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Using Trump’s claims of extensive damage to birds and wildlife, the legislation imposes meticulous “wildlife assessments” around the turbine site, and it requires builders “adapt operations … to minimize facility effects on bats, birds, and other wildlife.”

Davis is dubious of the claims. “See any dead birds here? I’ve never seen one,” he told the Guardian while standing beneath one of seven wind turbines on his property churning out new revenue for his ranch.

“We’re supposed to be the party of common sense but we’ve shifted to be like the Democrats and that is what makes me mad. When you tell me what to do on my own property that sounds more like a Democrat,” Davis added. “Some of the bills they are trying to pass would kill renewables.”

The Texas bills hit just as Trump is tamping down renewable on the federal level, barring major clean energy projects from federal lands and waters. “We’re going to try to have a policy where no windmills are being built,” said Trump.

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“It’s not productive or helpful when [Trump] spouts off like that,” said Brandon Corbin, a local Republican county judge who supports a proposed battery facility in the county that could add as much as 30 percent new revenue to Menard County’s overstretched budget. “We are the ones on the ground here and he says and does things that puts fear and uncertainty out.”

Read the full Guardian report here.