Major Proterra Investor Al Gore Lobbies White House on Infrastructure

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Free Beacon

Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm isn't the only Proterra owner who has the ear of President Joe Biden.

Former vice president Al Gore, whose investment firm raised $55 million in financing for the electric battery company in 2017, reportedly spoke with Biden in recent weeks to lobby the White House on keeping climate policy as a focus of his infrastructure proposal, which is expected to include major subsidies for green energy companies like Proterra. In addition to his meeting with the president, Gore spoke with top Biden consigliere Steve Ricchetti last week about funding the green energy industry through the infrastructure package. The White House told the Washington Post that "the call between Gore and Ricchetti ended on a positive note."

 

Gore's lobbying efforts come at a crucial moment for Proterra, one of his investment firm's major green energy investments. Proterra began trading publicly on NASDAQ on Tuesday morning, and executives are slated to ring the closing bell on Wednesday.

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It Pays To Be ‘Green’ – If You’re A Wall Street Fat Cat, That Is

America’s business community has always liked the color “green.” Traditionally, it was about earning U.S. dollars.  Today, it’s about brandishing a woke environmental image.

Perhaps nothing showcases this better than the trend toward “Environmental, Social and Governance” (ESG) investments by those on Wall Street.  Particularly attractive to millennials, the pitch for investing in ESG’s is to not just “make money,” but “make the world a better place” while doing it.

A noble-sounding idea?  Perhaps.  But as Rupert Darwall points out in a newly released study “Capitalism, Socialism and ESG,” there’s more to this racket than meets the eye.

That notion of a “better” world from ESG investments applies only if you agree with progressive climate and social agendas. For those who identify as anything other than “liberal,” backing investment strategies to kill fracking jobs, attack red meat, and help promote a Green New Deal economy may prove a bit hard to swallow.