Big Oil's $445 Million Investment in Trump and GOP 'Already Paying Off'

A report released earlier this week estimates that fossil fuel industry interests spent nearly $450 million during the 2024 election cycle on campaign donations, lobbying, and other efforts to bolster U.S. President Donald Trump, his Republican allies, and policies that benefit oil and gas corporations.

That investment "is already paying off," said Alex Witt, senior adviser for oil and gas at Climate Power, the advocacy group behind the new analysis.

According to the report, Big Oil's total known spending in the last election cycle amounted to "an astounding $445 million."

"Importantly, however, the oil and gas industry also routes undisclosed funds through dark money groups that do not have to reveal their donors, making it nearly impossible to understand the full scope of their impact," the report notes.

"Trump's energy agenda will raise costs for families, strip away energy choices, dirty our air and water, and put 400,000 new clean energy jobs at risk."

Climate Power found that $96 million of the $445 million in total spending was "direct donations" to Trump's presidential campaign, which openly solicited fossil fuel industry cash. Fossil fuel interests also spent close to $80 million on advertising in support of Trump and the GOP, more than $25 million backing down-ballot Republican candidates, and $243 million lobbying the U.S. Congress, according to the new analysis.

The latter investment is "likely to pay dividends when the Senate votes on Trump's Cabinet appointments and as budget and legislative priorities are set," the report states.

"'Energy Czar' and Department of the Interior nominee Doug Burgum helped Donald Trump deepen his oil and gas donor Rolodex," the report adds. "Trump named fracking evangelist and fossil fuel company CEO Chris Wright to lead the Department of Energy and Lee Zeldin, who accepted more than $400,000 in Big Oil campaign contributions, to lead the Environmental Protection Agency."

Soon after taking office earlier this week, Trump declared a "national energy emergency" as part of his sweeping effort to ramp up fossil fuel production, which was already at record levels under the Biden administration. Trump also withdrew the U.S. from the Paris climate accord and moved to unleash drilling in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, a step that one environmental group condemned as a "giveaway to Big Oil CEOs."

"Donald Trump's Day 1 actions have shown where his loyalties lie—executing the industry's wishlist at the expense of working Americans," Witt said Wednesday. "Trump's energy agenda will raise costs for families, strip away energy choices, dirty our air and water, and put 400,000 new clean energy jobs at risk."