Former President Donald Trump has promised to revitalize and unlock the U.S. energy sector if he returns to the White House in 2025, and he has a plethora of former officials and newcomers he could tap for key executive branch positions.

The Biden Administration has implemented many of its key policies to advance its broad climate change efforts, leveraging executive agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Department of the Interior (DOI), and Department of Energy (DOE). These agencies have reversed President Joe Biden’s energy policies and are following Trump’s “Drill, baby, drill” Agenda.

Several insiders with extensive experience in Republican energy policy speculated to the Daily Caller News Foundation about who might take the reins if Trump wins the November election.

“I've been really impressed with the number of former Trump administration officials, as well as people who have never served as Secretary of State before but are interested in becoming Secretary of State in the future, who have reached out to me about my experience and the process,” David Bernhardt, who served as Secretary of the Interior during the latter half of Trump's first term, told DCNF. “If President Trump wins, he will have a lot of talented people available to him in this round of political appointments. There are a lot of veterans, but also a lot of new, innovative people with fresh ideas. I think that's very exciting and bodes well for the president's second term and for our country.” (Related story: 'We're being overlooked': Coal state won't embrace Biden's 'just transition' to green energy)

When asked how he would bring down the prices of goods like gasoline, Trump responded, “Drill, dig!” pic.twitter.com/cVjqzjeaAJ

— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) May 11, 2023

However, the Trump campaign told the DCNF that internal discussions about who would fill those positions have not yet begun.

“There have been no discussions about who would serve in a second Trump administration,” Caroline Leavitt, national spokesperson for the Trump campaign, told DCNF. “When the time comes, President Trump will select the best possible people to carry out his America First policies.”

No matter who President Trump chooses to head the EPA, juice Having hired thousands of new employees and promulgated numerous major regulations, the Biden Administration has used the EPA to push through some of its most aggressive environmental policies, including major green power plant regulations, an electric vehicle (EV) mandate, and strict fine particulate emissions standards.

If Trump returns to the White House, at least some of these rules will likely be repealed. Pledged Repeal EV regulations.

Andrew WheelerAn energy expert, who requested anonymity, told DCNF that John F. Kennedy, who headed the agency from 2019 to 2021, could be nominated to lead the agency again if Trump wins the presidential election in November.

Other things that may be considered are: Mandy GunasekaraDuring President Trump's first term, he served as EPA chief of staff, principal deputy assistant administrator and senior policy adviser.

“Oxford, Mississippi is a beautiful community and it will be very difficult to leave. And the idea of ​​leaving my children and my 'Bible Girls' and returning to a hostile situation is difficult to accept. At the end of the day, that's a bridge I will cross when I get there,” Gunasekara told DCNF. “Andrew Wheeler is a very experienced leader at EPA and will undoubtedly faithfully implement the president's policies again.”

Myron Ebell, a former Competitive Enterprise Institute energy policy expert and recently retired member of the Trump EPA transition team, told DCNF that he thinks Gunasekara and Wheeler are “both excellent choices.”

“I don't think it would be appropriate to talk about positions that may be offered to me,” said Wheeler, who contacted the DCNF about the matter.

Another name worth noting is Anne VogelPrior to taking the role, Vogel currently runs the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency, according to energy experts, and worked on federal regulatory issues in Washington for American Electric Power Co. and in private law.

“Director Anne Vogel is currently Ohio “An EPA spokesperson told DCNF.”

In particular, Vogel testified It is scheduled to report to Congress in March 2023 on the train derailment and subsequent chemical combustion that polluted the skies over East Palestine, Ohio, in February 2023.

“I think they're going to need people who are committed to reforming these agencies and advancing Trump's policies, which are basically opening up the energy sector, which includes the coal industry, the oil and gas industry, everything,” Steve Milloy, a senior legal fellow at the Energy and Environmental Law Institute and a former member of the Trump EPA transition team, told DCNF. “They're going to have to be willing to face resistance, and there's going to be a lot of resistance, which there wasn't necessarily a willingness or readiness to face under the Trump administration.” (Related story: 'The swamp is getting deeper': EPA awards billions from Biden's landmark climate bill to organizations dominated by Democratic insiders)

EPA Administrator Claims Agency Doesn't Send 'One Dime' to Hard-Left Groups — But $50 Million in Questionhttps://t.co/BXjlAkuWup

— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) July 11, 2024

'Move forward at top speed'

As the agency responsible for managing America's federally managed lands and waters, DOI plays a key role in America's energy sector, leasing millions of acres, onshore and offshore, to oil and gas developers. Under President Biden and Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, DOI has taken numerous steps to restrict development on millions of acres of American land, such as announcing a minimum leasing schedule for offshore oil and gas drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.

Given President Trump’s call to “dig, dig, dig,” DOI’s approach to natural resource management could shift dramatically from its current stance as part of the Biden administration.

American Energy Alliance President Tom Pyle told the DCNF to focus on Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy of Alaska and Republican Gov. Doug Burgum of North Dakota as possible leaders of the Department of Energy under a second Trump term. But Burgum could also pursue other roles, such as secretary of the interior or a senior White House position, Pyle told the DCNF.

Burgum's representatives introduced the DCNF to the Trump campaign.

Both McKenna and Ebel suggested Bernhardt would be a good fit to return to the DOI helm if that was something both he and President Trump were interested in. Bernhardt declined to comment on whether he would want to return to the job or what specific role he would be interested in taking in Trump's second term.

Pyle said he doesn't think Trump feels obligated to stick to the system when choosing his political appointees.

“What became clear with President Trump's selection of his running mate was [J.D. Vance] “He no longer feels the need to reach out to appease the Republican establishment,” Pyle told DCNF. “It's now Trump's party, and he's picked the person he thinks will best help him achieve his agenda.”

Mike McKenna, a Republican strategist with extensive experience in the energy sector, agreed that Dunleavy and Burgum are the types of people who could run the DOI for Trump if asked.

“Regardless of who is selected as chief executive if Trump wins, I expect them to be fully committed to restoring or increasing energy production on federal lands,” Ebell told the DCNF, “but I also expect them to focus and focus their efforts on improving management of federal lands.”

Ebell said he would consider former Alaska Republican Lt. Gov. Meade Treadwell as a possible candidate if interested, and said he also thinks Republican Sens. John Barrasso of Wyoming and Mike Lee of Utah would be good candidates for the post, but that both are too valuable as experienced lawmakers to make the jump to executive branch.

“Senator Barrasso is focused on working for the people of Wyoming and passing President Trump's policies through the United States Senate,” a spokesperson for Senator Barrasso told DCNF. (RELATED: Josh Hawley accuses Biden administration officials of “not knowing” who's in charge of their own departments)

Senator Hawley: “The jobs of our blue-collar workers are a precious resource. Why should they be sacrificed for radical climate change policies?”

Haaland: “We know that there are 1.9 jobs for every American in this country… there are plenty of jobs.” pic.twitter.com/n21gostPdE

— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) May 2, 2023

Among other efforts, the Biden Department of Energy energy Efficient equipment, wider building decarbonisation plans and financing requests Huge The total amount of cash paid by taxpayers to green energy companies since 2021.

McKenna, who has experience in both the energy industry and Republican politics, named several candidates to watch.

Paul DabbarMr. Dubber, who served as undersecretary of Energy for science during the first term of the Trump administration, is a possible candidate, and Mr. McKenna said his management skills would be an asset that would appeal to Mr. Trump. Mr. Dubber declined to comment on the matter.

McKenna also cited Burgum as a potential candidate for the Department of Energy, but like Pyle, McKenna believes that if Burgum is interested in serving in a second Trump administration, he could be asked to serve in a variety of roles from the Department of Energy to the White House to the Department of Commerce.

One “dark horse” to watch is Bill CooperMcKenna said Cooper currently serves as vice president and general counsel for Golden Path LNG. In addition to his private sector experience, Cooper's experience with the Department of Energy, where he served in a variety of senior roles for about two years during President Trump's first term, could make him a potential candidate if he is interested in the job.

Ebel has not ruled out the possibility that Trump could reach out to the private sector in his search for a potential energy secretary.

“I think it makes sense to look at the private sector,” Ebel told DCNF, “if it’s someone who’s not part of the subsidy chain, who’s not part of the corporate welfare world, who’s not a special interest group that gets funding under the so-called Anti-Inflation Act or other Department of Energy programs, it makes a lot of sense.”

The offices of Cooper, Treadwell and Lee, as well as Dunleavy's office, did not respond to requests for comment.

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