Political Battle for Texas Heating Up With Soaring Temperatures

Texas Democratic gubernatorial candidate Beto O’Rourke supports green energy, but that didn’t stop him from attacking Gov. Greg Abbott over potential blackouts tied to the state’s reliance on wind power.

With temperatures forecast to be well over 100 degrees in Texas on July 11, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) issued a conservation appeal to the public.

ERCOT, which is in charge of the Texas electrical grid, asked residents and businesses to voluntarily conserve electricity on July 11 between 2-8 p.m., when a reserve capacity shortage was predicted.

Wind turbines were projected to produce less than 10 percent of their capacity, according to the agency.

The decrease in wind production combined with extreme heat and record demand prompted the call for Texans to cut back on electricity use. The agency stated that no widespread outages were expected.

Then Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden speaks after former Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-Texas) endorsed him at a campaign rally in Dallas on March 2, 2020. (Richard Rodriguez/AP Photo)

O’Rourke, who has vowed to fight climate change by working to remove all emissions from the oil and gas industry, wasted no time in blaming Abbott for the strain on the Texas electrical grid, which is unique in its independence from the rest of the United States.

“We can’t rely on the grid when it’s hot. We can’t rely on the grid when it’s cold,” O’Rourke posted on Twitter. “We can’t rely on Greg Abbott. It’s time to vote him out and fix the grid.”

Abbott’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

However, he supports oil and gas production in Texas along with its jobs. He has vowed to protect the industry from federal government climate overreach.

O’Rouke supports the Texas Climate Jobs Project, which is akin to the Green New