Democrats blasted President Trump’s “America First” budget plan for the Department of Energy as environmentalists said proposed cuts would have a devastating impact on greenhouse gas emissions and the economy.

Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio), the ranking member on the House Appropriations subcommittee overseeing the DOE budget, said the proposed funding rollbacks would “cede our future” to other countries like China that are investing in energy research.

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Dan Reicher, executive director at the Steyer-Taylor Center for Energy Policy and Finance at Stanford University, said the proposed elimination of loan guarantees doesn’t dovetail with Trump’s plans to improve infrastructure, considering that the program has supported projects in the past such as a major transmission line in Nevada. It also boosted Tesla Inc. early on with more than $450 million in loans, which the company later repaid early.

“It’s been a successful program that has improved performance by the day,” said Reicher of the loan guarantees.

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