David Roberts's Avatar

David Roberts

@volts.wtf

I run a newsletter/podcast called Volts about clean energy & politics. Subscribe & join the community at http://volts.wtf!

102,077
Followers
2,630
Following
13,184
Posts
30.04.2023
Joined
Posts Following

Latest posts by David Roberts @volts.wtf

Preview
Exclusive: Trump tells Reuters he did not sign off on ad campaign featuring homeland security secretary President Donald ​Trump told Reuters on Thursday that he did not sign off on a $220 million border security ‌advertising campaign featuring Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who faced bipartisa...

This is such a brutal shiv.

06.03.2026 02:44 👍 156 🔁 21 💬 12 📌 8

Wait, *another* one?

06.03.2026 02:07 👍 523 🔁 139 💬 19 📌 3

This was a fantastic listen.

It hammers home the point that we need to plan the transition. Letting the market do it based on profit is a recipe for disaster.

05.03.2026 23:29 👍 52 🔁 6 💬 1 📌 0

UK Labor following the Searchlight crew's advice! Popularism! And it's working just like they said it w...[finger to ear]

05.03.2026 21:38 👍 46 🔁 10 💬 3 📌 0
Preview
‘That’s bad for him to say’: Trump puts Paxton on notice in Texas Senate primary The president appeared to scold the attorney general.

Ken Paxton absolutely sold his soul for MAGA and Trump is about to fuck him in the most high-profile way possible.

You hate to see it. And by that I mean you f'ing love it.

05.03.2026 21:23 👍 223 🔁 34 💬 14 📌 1
Preview
WA voters to see ballot initiative aimed at trans girls in sports A state ballot initiative would require sex verification for girls’ school sports, raising concerns from pediatricians about cost, privacy and access to care.

Here's a ballot measure in Washington state that would force kids who want to play high school sports to “verify their biological sex," presumably by showing their genitals to their coach.

However much contempt you feel for the panty-sniffing creeps on the right, it's not enough.

05.03.2026 21:16 👍 162 🔁 51 💬 5 📌 3
Preview
Taiwan's energy dilemma Yeh-Tang "Ricky" Huang and I discuss the struggle to build renewables, the nuclear debate, and the promise of geothermal power.

The only flaw in the post is that it should have linked to this in-depth discussion of Taiwan's energy situation:

05.03.2026 21:11 👍 26 🔁 5 💬 0 📌 0
Preview
Taiwan's Modern Miracle The AI Boom Has Delivered a 2nd Economic Miracle to Taiwan, Pushing GDP Growth Above 23%. It Must Navigate Rising Geopolitical & Economic Tensions to Keep it.

Interesting stuff from @josephpolitano.bsky.social on Taiwan's ongoing economic miracle:

05.03.2026 21:10 👍 65 🔁 13 💬 2 📌 0

1000%

05.03.2026 21:02 👍 3 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Sure hope farmers are enjoying being allowed to say "retard" again because it's really difficult to see what else they're getting for their support.

05.03.2026 21:00 👍 151 🔁 13 💬 6 📌 0
Preview
Trump’s War on Iran Could Screw Over US Farmers The Middle East supplies a huge amount of the world’s fertilizer. Conflict in the region has sent prices soaring ahead of the critical spring planting season.

Lol, Trump has found yet another way to fuck over the farmers:

05.03.2026 21:00 👍 139 🔁 38 💬 5 📌 3

These might be your finest shoes.

05.03.2026 20:49 👍 3 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0

"You can only be decent because we are horrible" is a very, very popular line of thinking among horrible people.

05.03.2026 20:44 👍 1436 🔁 202 💬 34 📌 8

Noem finding out that, no matter how hard you play, you can't win the right-wing gender game.

05.03.2026 20:41 👍 169 🔁 24 💬 5 📌 1

Whole lotta people out there screenshotting this, Senator. We're going to hold you to it.

05.03.2026 20:38 👍 342 🔁 40 💬 7 📌 1

🤣

05.03.2026 20:38 👍 60 🔁 2 💬 5 📌 0

Have they considered widespread electrification, loans and loan guarantees to solar and wind and nuclear projects, and somewhat robust vehicular mileage standards to compel more efficiency?

Is *the exact model of the IRA* under the rock, or is it just one rock with “Drill Baby Drill” written on it?

05.03.2026 17:06 👍 917 🔁 188 💬 22 📌 6

today's essential listen.
Really fascinating discussion, and a super important one.

05.03.2026 18:26 👍 35 🔁 11 💬 2 📌 0

You're going to be so excited when you hear about batteries!

05.03.2026 20:21 👍 2 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Luckily, no one has said they are, so you don't need to believe it!

05.03.2026 20:19 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0

That's all down to Emily. She's amazing.

05.03.2026 18:02 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

But I keep being told that's everything bagel liberalism and marks me as unserious!

05.03.2026 17:41 👍 2 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

This is one of the most fascinating and maybe important conversations I've heard recently about transition. It's already infused in our energy debates, although very rarely acknowledged. So glad David and @gruberte.bsky.social did a pod cause the paper is still in my tabs.

05.03.2026 14:08 👍 60 🔁 19 💬 2 📌 0

This is, without irony, an accurate representation of roughly 98% of political analysis.

05.03.2026 17:35 👍 19 🔁 2 💬 0 📌 0

Remind me: when you bomb an elementary school, lure the survivors into a false sense of safety, and then bomb the survivors, leaving behind dozens and dozens of dead school children... are you the good guys?

05.03.2026 17:24 👍 462 🔁 187 💬 19 📌 4

Wilhoit.

05.03.2026 17:17 👍 66 🔁 11 💬 6 📌 0

This is crucial listening for … everyone. Especially folks who… live on an island.

05.03.2026 04:43 👍 50 🔁 11 💬 1 📌 0
Preview
The fate of fossil fuel systems in the "mid-transition" I talk with Emily Grubert about the hidden dangers of letting the free market manage the decline of our legacy energy infrastructure.

thanks to @volts.wtf for having me on to talk about coordinating and planning fossil phase out to build a better and actually decarbonized world. there‘s a lot we can do if we imagine a people-centered, service oriented future — and a LOT we miss if we don’t.

05.03.2026 02:45 👍 181 🔁 52 💬 4 📌 5
Preview
The fate of fossil fuel systems in the Podcast Episode · Volts · March 4 · 1h 15m

Amen to this much-needed conversation between @gruberte.bsky.social & @volts.wtf.

As I think about it: we can have a managed transition from fossil fuels or a chaos transition. This conversation brings wisdom to that choice—and what comes next.

05.03.2026 02:31 👍 36 🔁 7 💬 1 📌 0

Fascinating and important discussion

05.03.2026 01:14 👍 15 🔁 1 💬 0 📌 0