House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is poised to benefit from a law he vehemently opposed. Smack dab in the heart of his California congressional district, an oil and gas company is planning to build massive machines capable of sucking planet-warming pollution out of the air, POLITICO’s E&E News reporter Corbin Hiar writes. But to be viable, the project will likely need millions of dollars in support from a $3.5 billion program created by the 2021 infrastructure law — a bill McCarthy urged his Republican colleagues to oppose. The California Direct Air Capture Hub has a well-developed plan and would be located in a fossil-fuel-producing area, two features that increase its odds of winning government backing. The project would be just the latest instance of GOP lawmakers reaping the rewards of climate funding they fought. That fact hasn’t eluded President Joe Biden, who ribbed Republicans for the trend in Tuesday night’s State of the Union address. “Don’t worry, I promised to be the president for all Americans,” Biden said, turning to the Republican side of the House chamber. “We’ll fund your projects. And I’ll see you at the groundbreaking." Across the country, companies are pouring tens of billions of dollars into low-carbon energy, battery and electric vehicle projects that will benefit from incentives tucked inside legislation Biden championed. Roughly two-thirds of the major projects being funded by Biden’s climate law are in GOP-controlled districts, according to POLITICO’s tally. While no Republicans voted for the Inflation Reduction Act, Biden thanked Republicans who had supported the previously enacted bipartisan infrastructure law (13 in the House and 19 in the Senate). He said he didn’t begrudge those who voted against it, such as McCarthy, who was seated behind him. (McCarthy didn’t respond to Corbin’s request for comment.) The California project is one of several vying for infrastructure funds for so-called regional hubs meant to remove at least 1 million metric tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere each year. By 2050, climate scientists project, the world will need to remove as much as 10 billion metric tons of CO2 each year to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. Existing direct air capture plants remove less than 10,000 metric tons. The company planning the California project called it a “tremendous opportunity” to remove large amounts of carbon pollution from the air, but one that likely hinges on federal support. “Direct air capture is a nascent industry,” said Chris Gould, the company’s chief sustainability officer. “It needs this early stage funding to get the first projects initiated.”
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