New EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin made headlines last week bragging that he could rescind billions in loans for clean energy. But as with many Trumpian threats, it turns out to be hugely overstated, if not just a flat-out lie. All the money in question has not only been appropriated by Congress, but it has already been sent by the Treasury Department to private sector banks, who have established lines of credit and, in fact, then made loans to farm interests among others.

The much bigger threat to the job-creating U.S. clean energy economy comes from President Donald Trump‘s plans to eliminate dozens of advanced energy tax credits have unleashed more than $165 billion in private sector new clean energy technology investments at over one thousand factories across the country. These investments have already created more than 400,000 new jobs, including more than 215,000 jobs in these Republican states and districts alone.

No wonder these measures have a bipartisan history going back decades and have long enjoyed significant Republican support. In fact, more than three-quarters of these advanced energy projects are located in Republican states and districts.

It is true that some threats from Elon Musk, like ending loan guarantees to the private sector through the Department of Energy, could hurt the U.S. energy manufacturing boom. (Never mind the rank hypocrisy, since Musk himself directly benefited from a nearly $500 million federal loan guarantee that saved Tesla in 2010.) Of about $30 billion in advanced energy manufacturing scheduled to come online this year, half of these projects are facing delays or cancellations, according to a new report by Bloomberg NEF, in part due to Trump administration threats.

Even so, by far the most important decision over energy jobs—worth hundreds of billions in private sector investment—remains in the hands of Republicans in Congress.

Existing tax incentives—for carbon capture and storage, electric vehicles, solar, advanced nuclear power, geothermal energy and other sources—are also the key to the United States winning the global competition with China to capture trillions of dollars in the advanced energy global market. Today, China is dominating several key advanced energy sectors, including electric vehicle, batteries, and photovoltaic solar panels. The U.S. needs a wide range of tax advanced energy incentives so America can truly be “energy dominant,” as Trump says he wants.

These new energy sources are especially important given large increases in electricity demand due to the Big Tech buildout of artificial intelligence computing power. The AI-driven boom will account for nearly half of U.S. electricity growth from 2023 to 2028, requiring utilities to boost annual generation by as much as 26 percent. New sources of energy will be needed to limit consumer price increases, since demand from Big Tech will otherwise drive up energy prices and costs for average American consumers and businesses, undermining the Trump promise to tame inflation.

That is why last year 18 House Republicans called on Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) not to eliminate the advanced energy tax credits. They stated that “energy tax credits have spurred innovation, incentivized investment, and created good jobs in many parts of the country—including many districts represented by members of our conference… As Republicans, we support an all-of-the-above approach to energy development and tax credits that incentivize domestic production, innovation, and delivery from all sources.”

Today, 14 of those Republicans are still in Congress. Was their advocacy for new energy sources just a ploy to fool their constituents and get reelected? Will they deliberately violate their promise to support measures that are creating thousands of jobs for their own constituents?

The misguided effort against advanced forms of energy has nothing to do with an America First policy but instead represents self-defeating culture war politics against energy that canachieve American energy dominance. GOP members of Congress, not Elon Musk or Donald Trump, must face voters again in less than two years. In the key swing states and districts that will determine who has congressional control, votes against advanced energy job creation could cost Republicans their House majority.

So, who is going to look after protecting and creating energy jobs for hard-working Americans in Republican districts? Not Elon Musk, that’s for sure. Only Republican members of Congress can these save hundreds of thousands of good-paying jobs for their constituents, and help America truly be energy dominant.

Paul Bledsoe is a professorial lecturer at American University’s Center for Environmental Policy. He served as a staff member on the U.S. Senate Finance Committee.

The views expressed in this article are the writer’s own.