Energy

From Boom-Bust Oil to Stable Clean Energy Manufacturing

“One distinguishing characteristic of really civilized men is foresight; we have to, as a nation, exercise foresight for this nation in the future; and if we do not exercise that foresight, dark will be the future!”-Teddy Roosevelt

The Crisis

Oil jobs disappear every time prices crash—workers are laid off with no warning. 853,924 Permian Basin jobs depend on volatile oil markets. Many contract workers do not have full benefits. Young people leave West Texas not just because there’s nothing to do, but because there’s no stable future. China is building clean energy factories while we watch, perpetually stuck in the past.

The Solution

I will fight to transform the Permian Basin’s economy from one of extraction with transient workers to one of manufacturing with permanent homes. Oil workers already have the skills—welding, electrical work, equipment operation. We just need to build the factories where they can use those skills to build the future instead of extracting the past. This this transformation will include supporting workers’ full rights to unionize and collectively bargain for fair treatment, creating permanent community settlements with an economy and job market not dependent on the volatility of oil.

What This Could Look Like

PHASE 1 (Years 1-2): Emergency Investment and Construction Begins

• We revive the Reconstruction Finance Corporation succeeds, and secure $2 billion for solar and wind manufacturing in District 11.
• Manufacturing site preparation begins in Midland, Odessa, and San Angelo. 
• 2,000 construction jobs start immediately—you can watch the factories being built.
• Worker retraining programs launch for oil field workers, perfecting their skills for the economy to come.

PHASE 2 (Years 2-4): Major Construction and Equipment Installation

• Ground broken on MASSIVE solar panel factory in Midland.
• Wind turbine plant construction begins in Odessa.
• Battery storage facility construction starts in San Angelo. 
• 10,000 construction jobs at peak building phase.

PHASE 3 (Years 4-6): Production Begins and Results Show

• First solar panels roll off the production line, transforming the region’s energy grid. 
• Based on similar clean energy projects, we project 5,000 manufacturing jobs at $65,000+ per year.
• Oil workers get FIRST PRIORITY for these jobs.
• Economic transformation becomes VISIBLE—factories operational.

PHASE 4 (Years 6-8): Supply Chain Expansion

• Supply chain jobs created—3,000 positions in trucking, logistics, parts.
• Local companies get contracts to support factories.
• Service sector expands to support new workforce (i. e. Suddenly Midland and Odessa are FUN places to live!
• Housing construction booms as workers move to stable jobs—rent no longer rises and falls due to boom-bust cycles.

LONG-TERM VISION: Manufacturing Powerhouse Complete

• Our goal of 15,000 new clean energy jobs in District 11 is met!
• Stable employment that doesn’t depend on oil prices within a growing community. 
• West Texas becomes America’s clean energy capital, leading the fight against Climate Change
• Young people stay because there’s a future here. We gave them HOPE!!

What about Big Oil?

The oil business will NOT disappear. That is not my intention. We will build a hybrid energy production economy including other, more constant sources of energy. Big Oil will adjust by increasing their already existing investments in clean energy technologies. As the markets shift and our values change, Big Oil will invest in things like carbon capture, hydrogen, and petrochemicals, helping us to improve the environment. They may not like it at first, but if  WE COLLECTIVELY back these policies, they will have NO CHOICE. Oil production may dip, but more importantly, unemployment will remain LOW due to the growth of our new clean energy economy and sustained political pressure from me and YOU.