Brandon Hurlbut references climate modeling trajectories to illustrate progress made in emissions reductions and clean energy deployment.
What-if
Hurlbut: EV market would not exist without DOE loan to Tesla
“You know, we invested in Tesla, and that spurred the entire electrical vehicle market, and that wouldn't have happened without that government capital at a cheap rate.”
Assertion Partly supported
Hurlbut: $250B of $370B in clean tech investment goes to red states
“Axios this morning cited three hundred and seventy billion dollars to boost green energy and technology sectors. Two hundred and fifty billion dollars of that is going to red states.”
Prediction Not checkable as stated
Hurlbut: US clean tech capacity will meet demand within a couple of years
“Some of these products are only made in China, and we want to build that capacity here, but there are demand for these products, and we don't have the capacity to meet that demand right now.
We will in a couple of years once we build all these facilities.”
Prediction Open · timeframe Dec 2030
Hurlbut: US will definitely miss 2030 climate goals under Trump
“You know, the executive power that Trump would have if he was president, we would definitely not be hitting those goals because he would affect the executive branch in a major way.”
Assertion Partly supported
Hurlbut: 180 scientists warned Biden that LNG emissions rival coal
“The president received a letter from like a 180 scientists saying that When you look at those life cycle emissions, it's almost, or could be worse than coal, and you're locking this stuff in for, like, 40 years if you build these big export facilities.”
Prediction Not checkable as stated
Hurlbut: EV debate will soon become obsolete as costs fall
“I think the debate will quickly be obsolete just because it'll be like supporting DVDs over streaming when streaming came out. I mean, it's a better machine in every way. The EV that you buy today will be the most expensive EV ever, because the costs just keep…”