By JOHN KANELIS / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott had me … then he lost me.

The governor declared his displeasure with the Electric Reliability Council of Texas’s handling of the deep freeze that produce widespread power outages in the state. He called correctly for a deep probe into the decisions ERCOT made in cutting energy production capacity in the midst of the Arctic blast that sent temperatures plummeting.

Then what does Abbott do? He goes on Fox News and declares that the “Green New Deal” that advocates the use of wind and solar energy is the major culprit in the Texas energy crisis. What the … ?

Rolling Stone reported: On Tuesday, Governor Greg Abbott went on Fox News to point the finger at renewable energy. “This shows how the Green New Deal would be a deadly deal for the United States of America,” he said before claiming the “shutdown” of solar and wind energy “thrust Texas into a situation where it was lacking power.”

Texas Power Crisis: Gov. Greg Abbott Falsely Blames Green Energy – Rolling Stone

Good grief, man. Renewable energy accounts for a tiny fraction of the energy being produced in this state. It should be more, but it isn’t. Yet, Abbott decided to look for the straw man and beat it mercilessly in front of a friendly audience that has little tolerance or belief in renewable energy.

This is a ridiculous assumption coming from the state’s top elected official. He clearly is playing to a political base he will need if he runs for re-election in 2022. Indeed, Abbott is now being talked about as a possible presidential candidate in 2024.

Ugghh! He is taking aim at the wrong target if he is going to blame the Green New Deal, which I hasten to add hasn’t even been enacted by Congress. Donald Trump opposed the notion when he sat in the Oval Office and his successor as president, Joe Biden, is not a huge fan of the Green New Deal, either.

So why does Abbott beat the hell out of a policy that promotes clean energy, seeks to save the environment, endeavors to wean the nation of finite fossil fuels in favor of infinite sources of energy, such as sunshine and ever-present wind? He does so because the fossil fuel lobby includes big political donors who can influence politicians’ seeking to stay in office or perhaps seek a higher office. Do you get it?

Gov. Abbott continues, therefore, to disappoint me.

Texans are suffering because of inept energy management policies. As for the energy grid and the source of the power, it comes from petroleum, natural gas primarily. Renewable energy accounts for a tiny fraction. Abbott should have stuck with his initial anger at ERCOT for its mismanagement of energy during this crisis.

Instead he wandered onto a field that has next to nothing to do with the crisis at hand.

Shameful.