During the devastating winter outbreak in Texas, a Conservative group linked the outbreak to President Joe Biden, claiming that one of its executive orders gave the Chinese Communist Party access to the US power grid.
“Joe Biden gives our power network to the Chinese Communist Party,” tweeted the conservative activist group Students for Trump on February 16th.
The post also includes a quote from the group’s chief executive, Charlie Kirk, which reads: ‘While thousands of Americans are without power due to a lack of energy infrastructure, it is your daily reminder that Joe Biden is a Trump executive. recalled the Chinese involvement in our power grid. “
Other social media users were even more explicit about attributing the Texas disruption to Biden’s order.
“Anyone else worried that Joe Biden signed an executive order 3 weeks ago giving China 90 days of access to the US power grid and now Texas and Minneapolis have no power or heat?” read a tweet.
These tweets refer to the executive order on climate change policy that Biden signed on January 20, 2021.
Is it accurate to say that the order gave China access to the US power grid? No.
Biden’s executive order has suspended a mandate issued by former President Donald Trump to restrict the use of electrical equipment manufactured by foreign opponents, such as China. However, according to Biden’s executive order, the ban on the installation of foreign utilities in the US power grid remains in force.
We reached out to Kirk through his organization Turning Point USA, but we did not respond.
Biden suspends Trump’s executive order
To protect the U.S. power grid from the threat of a cyber attack, Trump issued an executive order on May 1, 2020, called “Securing the United States’ bulk power system.” The order prohibits the use of electrical equipment “designed, developed, manufactured or supplied” by persons owned by, controlled by, or subject to the jurisdiction or guidance of foreign entities such as China.
Under the order, Trump’s energy secretary Dan Brouillette issued a ban on US utilities using Chinese electrical equipment.
After taking office in January 2021, Biden signed a wave of executive orders that repealed Trump’s policies. One of them, which deals with climate change policy, suspended Trump’s order on May 1 for 90 days.
During the 90-day suspension, the White House energy secretary and budget director are ordered to take stock of Trump’s executive order and recommend whether a replacement should be issued. (Biden’s nominee as budget director has not been confirmed.)
However, according to the Department of Energy, the ban on Chinese electrical equipment remains in effect while the Trump order is reviewed.
“During this 90-day review period, Responsible Utility will refrain from installing electrical equipment for bulk power systems or programmable components … subject to ownership, control or influence of foreign adversaries,” the agency said in a question-and-answer session on its website. writing.
No evidence that Chinese intervention caused power outage in Texas
There is no evidence that Chinese intervention has shut down the Texas power grid, which is separate from the eastern and western nets that govern every other state in the continental US.
Energy experts have told us that many factors have driven the disruption, including the failure to overwinter Texas’ energy infrastructure, despite years of warnings.
Sam Newell, an electricity expert at the Brattle Group, conducted detailed analyzes as an explosion of North Pole air and wind engulfed the state, which was not built to withstand the cold. of the Texas power grid.
As energy output declined, the Texas Electric Reliability Board, which manages the Texas power grid, imposed rolling outages, causing power outages for millions of Texans.
Our verdict
Students for Trump claim: “Joe Biden gives our power network to the Chinese Communist Party.”
Biden has suspended part of a Trump order banning the use of Chinese electrical equipment in the U.S. power grid. However, the ban remains in force.
There is no evidence that Chinese intervention caused the power outage in Texas.
We rate it untrue.