'DEI activism': Republican AGs praise Trump SEC move to reverse Biden climate rule they fought in court

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Energy Secretary Chris Wright joined 'America's Newsroom' to discuss how he will implement his top priorities under President Donald Trump, the 'most alarming' energy data and the best approach in handling climate change.

FIRST ON FOX: Current and former state attorneys general are praising the Trump administration's U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for its "common sense" decision to roll back a Biden-era climate rule requiring companies to disclose their carbon emissions.

"We've led multiple common letters over the years against this radical Biden climate fiasco, and we've taken multiple steps to try to ensure that all of the federal agencies act consistent with the law," West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey told Fox News Digital on Wednesday. "So we've always had deep concerns about the legality of what the SEC was trying to do and the burdens that would it would impose on public companies. So this is a great day for the rule of law and against federal overreach, and I think it shows again, what happens when you have people in leadership positions that are willing to do the right things and not fall prey to the radical climate agenda."

As the then-West Virginia attorney general, Morrisey led a coalition of more than a dozen states — including Iowa, Georgia, Alabama and Alaska — in a lawsuit challenging the climate rule last year. Within 10 days of its passage, the rule faced over nine legal petitions. Among the challengers were Liberty Energy and Nomad Proppant Services.

Liberty Energy was founded by Chris Wright, who now serves as President Donald Trump’s Secretary of Energy.

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The SEC acting chairman, under the direction of President Donald Trump's directive to freeze certain federal regulations, is moving to delay a court hearing on a Biden-era climate rule that mandates companies to report their carbon emissions. (Getty Images)

The SEC acting chairman, Mark Uyeda, issued a statement Tuesday calling the Enhancement and Standardization of Climate-Related Disclosures for Investors rule – which was implemented in March 2024 but immediately racked up multiple lawsuits that were eventually consolidated into Iowa v. SEC – "deeply flawed and could inflict significant harm on the capital markets and our economy."

Uyeda added that the "the proposed rules overstepped the SEC’s regulatory authority" and that the SEC's filings "previously submitted in the cases consolidated in the Eighth Circuit do not reflect my views." Because of recent changes in the SEC’s leadership and President Donald Trump's directive to freeze new regulations, Uyeda instructed SEC staff to inform the court of these developments and request a delay in the case while the agency reconsiders its stance. 

However, Uyeda's commissioner, Caroline A. Crenshaw, issued a scathing statement in opposition to his request to delay the scheduling for oral arguments in the Appeals Court, arguing he acted "without the input of the full Commission."

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"I agree wholeheartedly with the acting Chairman that agencies and those who lead them must act within the boundaries of constitutional and statutory authority," Crenshaw said in a statement. "Nonetheless, I dispute with equal vigor the notion that the agency acted outside of its remit. It did not. The only things that have changed since the Rule was passed have been matters of politics and not substance. As such, I disagree with the position unilaterally taken today by the acting Chairman."

Under then-Chairman Gary Gensler, appointed by former President Joe Biden in 2021, the climate rule mandated that publicly traded companies include detailed information about climate-related risks, greenhouse gas emissions and the potential financial impacts of climate change in their annual reports and registration statements. 

Several attorneys general who were part of the group lawsuit last year told Fox News Digital the move was a win for "common sense" returning to the federal government that would save companies from extreme financial burdens. 

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"Finally, common sense is prevailing," Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr told Fox News Digital on Wednesday. "But cost of compliance, cost of missed opportunities, again, cost to rectify if the SEC had found a violation of what these companies were going to have to do – those are jobs and investment that would have been missed by these companies just because the federal government didn't like the way somebody was doing it, and just because they turned client the climate agenda into their own religion."

Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita, who was also a co-signer on the lawsuit led by Morrisey, told Fox News Digital in a statement that Uyeda's push to roll back the climate rule "is another sign that common sense has returned to our nation." He added in part that it was a "huge win" for taxpayers who "rightfully expect the SEC to be focused on protecting investors and financial markets rather than radical environmentalism."

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Former President Joe Biden's SEC put forward a regulation requiring publicly traded companies to disclose their carbon emissions. (David L. Ryan/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)

Morrisey and Carr both expect similar actions against the climate change agenda to occur under the current Trump administration, citing several executive orders issued last month dramatically reversing previous international climate commitments and promoting traditional energy sources, including withdrawing from the Paris Agreement for the second time. 

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In a statement to Fox News Digital, White House spokesman Kush Desai said Trump "has vocally and consistently championed dismantling ideological chokeholds over America’s institutions, entrepreneurs, and consumers to unleash our country’s unparalleled potential."

"The Trump administration will continue to prioritize merit, competence, and innovation over ESG and DEI activism," he said.