by Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell
President Donald Trump’s Department of the Interior is pausing offshore wind project construction due to “national security risks.”
“Due to national security concerns identified by the Department of War, Interior is PAUSING leases for 5 expensive, unreliable, heavily subsidized offshore wind farms!” Interior Secretary Doug Burgum wrote on X.
“ONE natural gas pipeline supplies as much energy as these 5 projects COMBINED,” Burgum added. “POTUS is bringing common sense back to energy policy & putting security FIRST!”
Burgum said the American government’s prime duty is “to protect the American people.”
“Today’s action addresses emerging national security risks, including the rapid evolution of the relevant adversary technologies, and the vulnerabilities created by large-scale offshore wind projects with proximity near our east coast population centers. The Trump administration will always prioritize the security of the American people,” he noted.
In a press release obtained by Fox Digital, the Interior Department said the pause will “give the Department, along with the Department of War and other relevant government agencies, time to work with leaseholders and state partners to assess the possibility of mitigating the national security risks posed by these projects.”
Burgum aims to address risks like “the rapid evolution of the relevant adversary technologies, and the vulnerabilities created by large-scale offshore wind projects with proximity near our east coast population centers.”
Leases with Vineyard Wind 1, Revolution Wind, CVOW, Sunrise Wind, and Empire Wind will be paused. Vineyard Wind 1 and Revolution Wind were part of the 2023 project, which was the largest in American history and was estimated to power almost 2 million homes.
Shortly after Trump’s inauguration, he issued a memorandum temporarily stopping offshore wind energy leasing on federal waters and halting approvals, permits, and loans for all wind projects pending a comprehensive review.
During his campaign, Trump promised to end offshore wind energy projects “on Day One.”
“We are going to make sure that that ends on day one,” he said. “I’m going to write it out in an executive order. It’s going to end on Day One.”
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Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell is the White House Correspondent for “The Daily Signal.” Zachery Schmidt is the digital editor of The Star News Network and contributed to this story.
