Some of Donald Trump’s biggest donors secured a significant victory as the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) moved to end a rule opposed by fossil fuel companies, according to a report on Monday. The Biden administration had initially approved the rule nearly a year ago, requiring large corporations to disclose their greenhouse gas emissions and plans to mitigate them.
However, Energy Secretary Chris Wright, alongside Trump donors Harold Hamm and Kelcy Warren, successfully pressured the SEC to backtrack, as reported by The Washington Post. “The move to back off the rule, which has yet to be implemented because of pending lawsuits, represents one of the most immediate victories delivered by the Trump administration to the three men and other fossil fuel companies,” the newspaper stated.
Hamm’s oil company, Continental Resources, condemned the rule as “hostile energy public policy,” while Warren’s Energy Transfer pipeline firm and Wright’s Liberty Energy filed legal challenges. SEC Acting Chair Mark Uyeda ultimately halted the regulation, calling it a “deeply flawed” requirement.
“During last year’s presidential race, Trump courted the oil and gas industry and asked its executives to come up with $1 billion for his campaign,” The Washington Post reported. “Giving such a sum would be a ‘deal,’ Trump told them at an April 2024 meeting at Mar-a-Lago, because of his stands on taxes and regulation.”
Following this, Hamm began contacting fellow oil executives to encourage campaign donations and fundraiser attendance. Warren co-hosted a $250,000-per-person fundraiser and personally contributed at least $800,000 to Trump’s campaign, while Wright donated more than $273,000 to pro-Trump super PACs and the Republican National Committee.
The SEC’s withdrawal from the disclosure rule, occurring just weeks after Trump’s inauguration, marks one of the first expected victories for oil and gas industry leaders. The Washington Post noted, “On his first day in office, Trump signed an executive order, titled ‘Unleashing American Energy,’ which declared a national policy to encourage energy exploration and production on federal lands and waters, including on the Outer Continental Shelf.”