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Inside MAGA’s Global Climate Agenda

Donald Trump, Elon Musk, JD Vance, Vivek Ramaswamy, Kemi Badenoch, Nigel Farage, Liz Truss, Robert Jenrick, Paul Marshall, Jordan Peterson, against a background of smaller portraits of international politicians, leaders of think tanks, media outlets, and donors in the U.S., U.K., and Canada, connected by lines of connection in a network map.

About the Series

It’s no secret that the second Donald Trump presidency is one of the loudest and most aggressive anti-climate administrations in history. But in this series we go behind the scenes to reveal how climate crisis deniers and other key figures involved with the MAGA movement are taking advantage of this political moment in quieter and more insidious ways. And we show how an emboldened far-right on both sides of the Atlantic is pushing a global fossil fuel agenda.  

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In This Series

How the Oil Industry Is Pushing EPA to 'Effectively Gut' Methane Rules During Affordability and Climate Crises
ByRachel Santarsiero
on
From the One Big Beautiful Bill to a pipeline “loophole,” a new report highlights industry influence on EPA and Congress to reverse climate rules.
Series: MAGA
A red, white, and blue banner with the EPA logo and U.S. 250th anniversary that reads 'Powering the Great American Comeback' on the outside of the EPA headquarters in Washington, D.C.
uk/Tory Shadow Chancellor Andrew Griffith’s MAGA Network
ByAdam Barnett
on
The former Liz Truss ally has been a regular on the pro-Trump speaking circuit.
Series: MAGA
uk/Nigel Farage Has Spoken at 15 Trump-Linked Events Since 2024 Election
ByAdam Barnett
on
The Clacton MP has received a platform from a network of MAGA groups that have pushed the president’s agenda in the UK and beyond.
Series: MAGA
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage speaking at CPAC GB in July 2026. Credit: MVF / YouTube
uk/OpenAI Draws Fire for Employee’s Remarks at Pro-Trump CPAC GB Event
ByAdam Barnett
on
A member of staff at the firm advocated for AI deregulation at the Reform-linked conference.
Series: Tech vs Climate, MAGA
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Credit: TechCrunch (CC BY 2.0)
us/Exxon’s Robert Levy Is Joining the DOJ Division That Dubs Itself 'the Nation’s Largest Environmental Law Firm'
ByRachel Santarsiero
on
The longtime Big Oil attorney has major ties to conservative legal groups.
Series: MAGA
Robert L. Levy, then executive counsel at Exxon, speaking at a Federalist Society event in 2025. (Credit: Still from Federalist Society video)
Anthropic Crowdsourced Ethics Feedback at a Far-Right London Confab
ByRachel Santarsiero
on
Company’s “faith and philosophy partnerships” lead sought “moral voices” for future AI models at the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship conference.
Series: Alliance for Responsible Citizenship, MAGA
Anthropic's Chloe Lubinski was a featured speaker at the 2026 Alliance for Responsible Citizenship conference. (Video still via ARC on YouTube)
uk/Trump’s Energy Secretary Says ‘Cold Is Larger Killer’ During Record European Heatwave
ByAdam Barnett
on
Chris Wright, a former oil and gas executive, urged the UK to embrace fossil fuels at right-wing Alliance for Responsible Citizenship conference in London.
Series: Alliance for Responsible Citizenship, MAGA
Trump administration Energy Secretary Chris Wright appeared at the ARC conference via video link. (Credit: DeSmog)
uk/Zia Yusuf Cosying Up to Group Behind ‘Authoritarian’ Project 2025 Agenda
BySam Bright
on
Reform has been chasing even closer ties to Trump’s allies.
Series: MAGA
A DeSmog collage of Reform UK leader Nigel Farage and the party’s home affairs spokesman Zia Yusuf. Credit: Reform UK / YouTube (Farage), Yusuf (Z979)
uk/Nigel Farage to Headline Liz Truss’ CPAC GB Event
BySam Bright
on
The Reform leader has opted to join the pro-Trump conference as it comes to the UK.
Series: MAGA
A DeSmog collage of Reform UK leader Nigel Farage and former Conservative prime minister Liz Truss in front of a CPAC sign. Credit: Gage Skidmore (Nigel Farage and CPAC sign), Tim Hammond / No 10 Downing Street (Liz Truss)
Heartland Institute Podcast Questions Whether All Americans ‘Should Have the Right to Vote’
ByRei Takver
on
A couple days later, the Trump-linked group hosted EPA chief — and potential attorney general — Lee Zeldin at a Washington, D.C. event.
Series: MAGA
Jim Lakely, the Heartland Institute's communications director, advocated for taking away voting rights from some Americans during an April 2026 podcast. (Credit: Video still via Heartland Institute/YouTube)
Revealed: The MAGA Plan to ‘Take Out’ Progressive Leaders Worldwide
ByGeoff Dembicki
on
Trump-aligned CPAC is backing far-right electoral candidates across Latin America and Europe — including Hungarian strongman Viktor Orbán.
Series: MAGA
At CPAC Hungary 2026, Victor Orbán publicly thanked American Conservative Union leader Mark Schlapp for CPAC's support in upcoming elections. Orbán, head of the far-right nationalist Fidesz party, hopes to win a fourth term as prime minister. Credit: Video still via CPAC Hungary
uk/Reform Policy Chief James Orr Shared Stage With White Nationalist
BySam Bright
on
One of Farage’s top advisors rubbed shoulders with a far-right Estonian politician who has said “if you’re black, go back”.
Series: MAGA
Reform UK head of policy James Orr at CPAC Hungary in March 2026. Credit: The European Conservative / YouTube
uk/Nigel Farage Paid £27,000 to Speak at Pro-Trump U.S. Think Tank
ByPhoebe Cooke and Adam Barnett
on
The Reform UK leader’s planned trip to Washington D.C. has prompted fresh consternation from campaigners.
Series: MAGA
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage addresses the crowd at a local and mayoral election campaign launch rally in Birmingham, England, March 2025. Credit: Jack Taylor / Alamy
uk/Tory-Linked Climate Denial Group Seeks Funds in Trump’s America
ByAdam Barnett
on
Ex-MP Steve Baker claims role in Conservative net zero backlash at New York event hosted by oil-funded American “friends”.
Series: MAGA
Former Conservative MP Steve Baker, pictured here in October 2024. Baker was one of the speakers at a 'Net Zero and Freedom’ event at the Penn Club, New York City, February 19, 2026. Credit: Brian Lawless/PA Images
Reform Candidate Matthew Goodwin’s MAGA Network
ByAdam Barnett
on
“Anti-elite” GB News presenter standing in Gorton and Denton has ties to powerful anti-climate groups allied to Donald Trump.
Series: Defending-UK-Democracy, MAGA
Reform UK’s Matthew Goodwin speaking at the National Conservatism conference in Brussels in 2024. Credit: National Conservatism / YouTube
Trump Accused of Trying to ‘Divide and Destabilise’ Europe Through New MAGA Fund
ByAdam Barnett, Clare Carlile and Sam Bright
on
UK and EU leaders have been called upon to “reject” MAGA’s “foreign interference”.
Series: MAGA, Defending-UK-Democracy
U.S. President Donald Trump in front of a collage of U.S., UK and EU flags. Credit: NATO (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
MAGA Gathers in European Parliament to Attack EU Laws
ByJoey Grostern
on
The European far-right rubbed shoulders with pro-Trump groups in Brussels.
Series: MAGA
Jay Richards, vice president of social and domestic policy at The Heritage Foundation, addresses policymakers at the Political Network for Values 'Free Speech vs Regulated Speech’ conference in Brussels, February 4, 2026. Credit: Political Network for Values
Danielle Smith Working With Trump Official Who Wants to Annex Greenland
ByMary Stuart
on
The Alberta premier belongs to a U.S. group called the Governors Coalition for Energy Security that’s led by Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry, Trump’s envoy to Greenland.
Series: MAGA
Danielle Smith with Jeff Landry (right) and others at Donald Trump inauguration event in January 2025. Credit: Danielle Smith X account
Group Linked to Hungary's Orban Co-organises Young Republican Gala
ByClare Carlile and Joey Grostern
on
Far-right politicians from France, Germany, and other European nations and their U.S. allies celebrated their growing bonds and shared goals at a lavish party in New York City.
Series: MAGA
New York Young Republican Club Policy Chairman Dovid Holtzman gives an award to Markus Frohnmaier of Germany's far-right party AfD in this video still from the club's 2026 annual gala. (Credit: NYYRC)
The Koch Network Is Pushing Trump to Accelerate AI, Documents Show
ByGeoff Dembicki
on
Right-wing political group Americans for Prosperity, backed by oil and gas billionaire Charles Koch, sees data centers as part of a larger pro-fossil fuel agenda.
Series: MAGA, Tech vs Climate
Koch, Inc., said in October that its real estate arm has been getting into the business of building data centers like this one in Council Bluffs, Iowa. Credit: Chad Davis/Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
uk/Mapped: Pro-Trump Heartland Institute’s European Network
ByAdam Barnett
on
The U.S. climate science denial group is attempting to forge a global anti-green alliance.
Series: MAGA
us/Nvidia CEO Praises Trump Energy Chief — a Climate Denier — and his 'Passion' for Science
ByRei Takver
on
Jensen Huang gives "a shout-out for Secretary Chris Wright" as Nvidia and Trump administration partner on a massive AI buildout.
Series: Tech vs Climate, MAGA
Video still of Nvidia CEO Jason Huang's keynote speech at an October AI conference. The English caption reads, "I have to have a shoutout for Secretary Chris Wright. He has brought so much energy to the DOE."
Analysis
us/Scores of Climate Experts Condemn Trump Climate Report as ‘Junk Science’
BySharon Kelly and Emily J Gertz
on
A 435-page review found the authors used standard climate denier tropes to produce a report riddled with errors.
Series: MAGA
A growing memorial of wooden crosses lines the banks of the Guadalupe River in Kerr County, part of a riverside installation by Dallas artist Roberto Marquez to honor the more than 100 victims of Central Texas’s deadly July 4 flash floods. The crosses — some fashioned from debris swept up by the torrent of the Guadalupe River — stand against the backdrop of its surging waters, the sound of rushing currents filling the air as the community continues to mourn and search for those still missing.
uk/Farage to Share Stage with Architects of Trump’s Anti-Climate Agenda
ByAdam Barnett
on
The Reform leader will be skipping Parliament again in favour of a conference in Washington DC.
Series: MAGA, Defending-UK-Democracy
Nigel Farage at the 2024 National Conservatism conference in Brussels. Credit: Belga News Agency / Alamy
us/Google President Praised MAGA Speech Slamming ‘Climate Extremist Agenda’
ByGeoff Dembicki
on
Interior Secretary Doug Burgum told an AI conference that data centers should be powered by coal, gas, and nuclear. Ruth Porat said his “comments were fantastic.”
Series: Tech vs Climate, MAGA
Credit: DeSmog
us/Who’s the Fossil Fuel-Backed 'Philosopher' Shaping Trump’s Megabill Clean Energy Cuts?
BySharon Kelly
on
GOP Sen. Thom Tillis took to Senate floor to decry lobbyists like Alex Epstein pushing huge energy moves “without a clue about what they are potentially doing to our grid.”
Series: MAGA
Alex Epstein smiles in a suit jacket holding an iPad and looking right, with a red background.
Analysis
How MAGA Lobbying is Undermining EU Climate Rules
BySam Bright
on
European leaders are bending to the demands of U.S. climate science deniers.
Series: MAGA
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, U.S. President Donald Trump, and French President Emmanuel Macron. DeSmog collage. Credit: Faces of the World / Flickr (Macron), Steffen Prößdorf (Merz), Gage Skidmore / Flickr (Trump)
Analysis
us/MAPPED: 70 Percent of Trump’s Cabinet Tied to Project 2025 Groups
ByJoe Fassler
on
More than 50 high-level Trump administration officials have links to groups behind the Heritage Foundation-backed plan, a DeSmog analysis found.
Series: MAGA
Graphic illustration showing orange outline of President Trump at a cabinet meeting around an oval table with black outlines of people seated, and two-thirds of the table covered in white with the logo Project 2025.
Analysis
us/Elon Musk’s Government Legacy Was Enacting Project 2025. His Ties Go Back Years.
ByJoe Fassler
on
The billionaire rescued the right-wing plan to dismantle the government while at its most toxic moment. Enacting its vision at DOGE, Musk was Trump’s enabler and fall guy.
Series: MAGA
Elon Musk holding a chainsaw overhead onstage at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) 2025, with an American flag behind him and his last name in large white letters on a banner to his right.
uk/‘Here to Return the Favour’: MAGA Descends on Poland Ahead of Crucial Vote
BySam Bright and Geoff Dembicki
on
After a series of setbacks in Europe, Trump’s allies attended CPAC Poland in the hope of influencing the presidential election.
Series: MAGA
U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference, CPAC, on 27 May 2025, in Jasionka, Poland. Credit: AP Photo / Alex Brandon, Pool / Alamy
uk/Group Behind ‘Autocratic’ Trump Agenda Working on Albanian Election
BySam Bright
on
The Heritage Foundation helped to “design” the manifesto of candidate Sali Berisha, who is accused of corruption.
Series: MAGA
Democratic Party of Albania chair Sali Berisha, and U.S. President Donald Trump. Credit: Gage Skidmore / World Economic Forum / Daniren / Alamy Stock Photo
uk/Hedge Fund Boss Paul Marshall Bet Big on Elon Musk Before Trump’s Election
BySam Bright
on
The UK media baron trebled his shareholding in Tesla, while his outlets pumped out pro-Musk content.
Series: MAGA, Alliance for Responsible Citizenship
Hedge fund manager and UK media owner Paul Marshall, and Tesla CEO Elon Musk. Credit: ARC Forum / Gage Skidmore
Poilievre Mapped: His Inner Circle of Lobbyists and Right-wing Activists
ByGeoff Dembicki
on
New DeSmog map shows how the leader of Canada's Conservative Party is linked to Koch Industries, Elon Musk, and former prime minister Stephen Harper.
Series: MAGA
DeSmog's research documents the web of connections between the inner circle of Canadian politician Pierre Poilievre and his federal Conservatives to corporate lobbyists, political operatives, social media strategists, industrial polluters, and tech giants.
How Jordan Peterson Became a Global Anti-Net Zero Power Broker
ByGeoff Dembicki
on
The Canadian psychologist is leading a Trump administration-linked network opposed to eliminating greenhouse gas pollution by 2050.
Series: MAGA, Alliance for Responsible Citizenship
Collaged image of Jordan Peterson and Donald Trump against a yellow background with smokestacks.
us/An Open Letter from EPA Staff to the American Public
ByGuest
on
“We cannot stand by and allow this to happen. We need to hold this administration accountable.”
Series: MAGA
Credit:
Who is Importing Donald Trump’s Anti-Climate Agenda to Germany?
ByAnnika Joeres, Elena Kolb and Katarina Huth
on
An investigation by CORRECTIV maps the influential axis of think tanks and politicians encouraging Europe to “drill baby drill”.
Series: MAGA
U.S. President Donald Trump. Credit: Gage Skidmore (Donald Trump - CC BY-SA 2.0) Nicolas Raymond (German flag - CC BY 2.0)
Analysis
Elon Musk’s Embrace of Far-Right Energizes Transatlantic Climate Denial 
ByGeoff Dembicki, Edward Donnelly, Joe Fassler and Adam Barnett
on
The tech billionaire is invigorating groups in the U.S. and Europe aiming to sabotage climate action, a DeSmog media analysis shows.
Series: MAGA, Tech vs Climate
"I think you really are the best hope for Germany," Elon Musk told the thousands attending the far-right Alternative for Germany party's rally on January 25. France 24 English/YouTube
U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright Backs Coal and Attacks ‘Sinister’ Climate Targets at ARC Conference 
ByAdam Barnett
on
The Trump appointee and fossil fuel executive called the transition to renewable energy “lunacy” at an event packed with climate science deniers.
Series: MAGA, Alliance for Responsible Citizenship
U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright speaking at the 2025 Alliance for Responsible Citizenship conference. Credit: ARC / YouTube
uk/Kemi Badenoch and Nigel Farage to Speak at ‘Glastonbury for Climate Deniers’
BySam Bright
on
A pro-Trump, pro-oil oligarchy is being convened by a group backed by the owners of GB News, campaigners say.
Series: MAGA, Alliance for Responsible Citizenship, Defending-UK-Democracy
Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch at the 2023 Alliance for Responsible Citizenship conference. Credit: ARC / YouTube
us/Finger-Pointing Over Funding Freeze May Lead Trump to Drop Lawyer Linked to DOGE and Project 2025
BySharon Kelly
on
Office of Management and Budget General Counsel Mark Paoletta reportedly drafted the memo that took aim at the “green new deal” but caused widespread upheaval.
Series: MAGA
Left, Elon Musk, middle, Mark Paoletta, right, navy blue background cover of Project 2025's 'Mandate for Leadership'
Analysis
Q & A: Jared Yates Sexton on the 'Weaponized Abuse' of Authoritarianism
ByMatthew Green
on
Understanding how autocrats and oligarchs capture and consolidate state power.
Series: MAGA
Screenshot of Dispatches From A Collapsing State, Jared Yates Sexton's newsletter. Credit: DeSmog.
Trump Interior Nominee Doug Burgum Hosted ‘VIP Dinner’ for Oil, Gas, and Coal Execs Last Year, Emails Show
BySharon Kelly
on
North Dakota’s Rainbow Energy – which plans to mix coal, crypto, and carbon capture – among those invited to the former governor’s table.
Series: MAGA
Trump’s Interior nominee Doug Burgum (center) held a VIP dinner for oil industry executives including, (left, top to bottom) Chris Wright, President Trump’s Department of Energy nominee, and oil tycoon Harold Hamm, along with (right top to bottom) Bakken shale oil producer Danny Brown, and Todd Slawson, chair of the North Dakota Petroleum Council. Credit: Wikimedia Commons/DeSmog
uk/U.S. Climate Denial Group Using Far-Right to Attack EU Green Policies
BySam Bright and Clare Carlile
on
The pro-Trump Heartland Institute claims it spearheaded opposition to a flagship European nature law.
Series: MAGA
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, U.S. President Donald Trump, Heartland Institute President James Taylor, and Austrian MEP Harald Vilimsky.
Analysis
uk/Mapped: Donald Trump’s Transatlantic Anti-Green Network
ByAdam Barnett
on
Politicians, donors, think tanks, and media outlets in the UK and U.S. are working increasingly closely to scupper climate policies and promote fossil fuel extraction.
Series: MAGA
uk/Nigel Farage Helps to Launch U.S. Climate Denial Group in UK
BySam Bright
on
The Heartland Institute, which questions human-made climate change, has established a new branch in London.
Series: MAGA, Defending-UK-Democracy
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage speaking at the Heartland Institute’s 40th anniversary fundraiser in September 2024. Credit: Heartland Institute / YouTube
6 Fracking Billionaires and Climate Denial Groups Behind Trump’s Cabinet
ByJoe Fassler
on
Trump’s nominees are backed by major players in the world of climate obstruction – from Project 2025 and Koch network fixtures to oil-soaked Christian nationalists.
Series: MAGA
Trump’s cabinet nominees are backed by major climate obstructionists, including fracking tycoon Harold Hamm (left) and oil and gas billionaire Tim Dunn. Credit: Dunn: On the Edge/YouTube
Group That Calls CO2 ‘Essential’ Praises Trump Energy Secretary Pick Chris Wright
ByGeoff Dembicki
on
The head of the CO2 Coalition tells DeSmog that Wright agrees carbon dioxide is “not the demon molecule, it’s the miracle molecule.”
Series: MAGA
Climate denier Gregory Wrightstone (left) has nothing but praise for Trump’s energy secretary pick, Chris Wright (right). Credit: DeSmog
Trump EPA Pick Lee Zeldin Backed by Texas Fracking Billionaire Tim Dunn
ByGeoff Dembicki
on
Zeldin is part of the America First Policy Institute, a pro-Trump think tank Dunn founded that pushes anti-climate policies.
Series: MAGA
Tim Dunn, left, a religious-right fracking billionaire from Texas, has backed Lee Zeldin, right, Trump’s choice to head the EPA. Credit: YouTube/
us/Trump Megadonor Tim Dunn Has a Plan More Extreme Than Project 2025
ByGeoff Dembicki
on
The Texas fracking billionaire wants to rewrite the U.S. Constitution to advance climate denial and other far-right priorities.
Series: MAGA
Black and white illustration of Tim Dunn in center, with a red, white and blue American flag background, a white Christian cross, and black silhouette of an oil rig and oil drum.
Inside the Anti-Climate Culture War Led by Jordan Peterson and Project 2025
ByGeoff Dembicki
on
The Canadian influencer and his allies in the U.S. religious right want people to see climate action as a ‘pseudo-religion.’
Series: MAGA, Alliance for Responsible Citizenship
Jordan Peterson gives climate change deniers a platform on his YouTube channel.
us/6 Billionaire Fortunes Bankrolling Project 2025
ByJoe Fassler
on
More than $120 million from a few ultra-wealthy families has powered the Heritage Foundation and other groups that created the plan to remake American government.
Series: MAGA
Left, Donald Trump, center, the cover of Project 2025's 'Mandate for Leadership: the Conservative Promise' Foreword by Kevin Roberts, Phd, Edited by Paul Dans and Steven Groves, Right, JD Vance.
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