Tesla might symbolize sleek innovation and the promise of a carbon-free future, but it wouldn’t exist without California. That’s not a guess—it’s historical fact. The very success of Tesla rests on a framework of climate regulations, state-backed incentives, and public investment in clean energy infrastructure. And it’s this framework that is now under existential threat.
In a time of growing environmental urgency, the sharp reversal of climate policy under the Trump administration isn’t just a political swing—it’s a planetary gamble. At the heart of this clash is a core question: can innovation flourish without regulation? Former California Governor Jerry Brown says no—and history is on his side.
The Roots of Innovation Are Policy-Driven
California’s pioneering environmental policies—crafted across decades and multiple administrations—made it possible for technologies like electric vehicles (EVs) to thrive. From generous subsidies to strict carbon emission mandates, the state created fertile ground for innovation.
“Tesla is a California creation,” Brown confirms. During his four terms as governor, Brown helped shape regulations that pushed companies toward energy efficiency and clean technology. “Regulation is a driver of technology,” he says. “It’s what has made our vehicles cleaner, our homes more efficient, and our energy sources more sustainable.”
Yet for Trump’s team, such regulation is not a driver but a roadblock. In March 2025, new EPA administrator Lee Zeldin declared “the greatest day of deregulation our nation has ever seen,” framing environmental standards as part of a “climate change religion” that must be dismantled to protect economic freedom.
The Myth of the Free Market
To Brown, this ideology is more fantasy than fact. “The market,” he says, “is something nobody has ever seen, tasted, or talked to. It’s a metaphor for those who want to do whatever benefits them.” He warns that without rules, we don’t have a market—we have chaos.
Indeed, history offers no examples of transformative innovation emerging from regulatory vacuums. From the internet to aerospace, government support has underpinned every major technological leap. Climate tech is no different.
The Trump administration’s attack on environmental policy is thus not just short-sighted—it’s dangerously naïve. By targeting California’s environmental waiver—established under President Nixon and Governor Reagan—the administration is trying to strip states of their right to lead. And more worryingly, they’re taking aim at the EPA’s “endangerment finding,” which classifies carbon dioxide as a pollutant hazardous to human health.
If this legal classification is overturned, the entire scaffolding of carbon regulation—on cars, power plants, refineries—collapses. “That would be game over,” Brown warns.
Climate Denial as National Identity
For Brown, the threat goes beyond policy. It’s cultural. The embrace of climate denial has become a kind of national identity for a large swath of the American electorate. “Trump is America,” Brown says starkly. “Even when he leaves, the coalition remains.”
And that, perhaps, is the true eclipse: not a passing shadow, but a shift in the nation’s moral compass. “Significant players and large swaths of Americans are cheering, applauding, or passively going along with indifference,” Brown says. “That is the real story of America today.”
In this altered political landscape, the challenge isn’t just lawsuits and executive orders—it’s confronting a worldview that sees regulation as tyranny and climate science as fiction.
A Global Tectonic Shift
While America regresses, the rest of the world is moving on. China’s BYD recently debuted a five-minute EV battery recharge system—an innovation that could reshape global markets. Europe and China are forming what some call a “renewable energy entente,” while America joins fossil fuel heavyweights like Russia and Saudi Arabia in a backward march.
Nathan Gardels, editor of Noema Magazine, argues that this split could reshape geopolitics. A world divided between green powers and petro-states isn’t just a climate issue—it’s a power struggle with vast economic and moral consequences.
And yet, America’s choices still matter. As one of the top greenhouse gas emitters, U.S. leadership—or lack thereof—has global ripple effects. Walking away from climate responsibility while ramping up fossil fuel production amounts to sabotaging the global push to avoid climate catastrophe.
The Long Game of Resistance
Despite the grim headlines, Brown sees reason for hope. Trump’s radicalism, he believes, may ultimately provoke its own undoing. “Their overreach will sow the seeds of reaction,” he says, predicting that courts, states, and a mobilized public will push back.
Still, he worries that time is not on our side. “The damage they’re doing now—legally, culturally, and globally—won’t be easy to undo.”
We’re not just talking about policy; we’re talking about the very shape of our future. Will America be remembered as the nation that accelerated the planet’s decline—or as one that reversed course in time?
That remains our choice to make.