Great column. Renewable energy has a growing role to play in meeting the world's energy needs. Trump will be ceding technological leadership to China if his present fossil fuels only policies continue to play out. The US military strongly endorses the use of renewable energy for a variety of reasons. Solar installations at bases in California are, for example, cutting electricity bills and making the bases capable of operating properly if grid power is interrupted either by hackers or storms. The US Navy has been developing a range of devices to harvest renewable energy, including a novel hydrokinetic device.

https://cleantechnica.com/2017/03/15/us-navy-wades-another-pitch-low-cost-renewable-energy/

The Trump administration can ignore the changes that are shaping the modern world but other countries will not. The Trump administration can gut the CAFE fuel economy rules in the US but other countries will not. Trump's policies are likely to guarantee that jobs leave America.