Executive Director @ForFreeMarkets, Founder and ED @FightExtremism, former @StateDept @USUN. RTs not endorsements.
Joined February 2018
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Thanks to @NRO for publishing my piece on how apocalyptic AI warnings are fueling costly policy mistakes. NY's data center moratorium is just one example @ForFreeMarkets
New York’s data center moratorium misunderstands artificial intelligence. | @dlibsen
nationalreview.com/2026/09/d…
An important bipartisan argument for permitting reform from @JasonBordoff: The same obstacles that delay oil and gas projects also impede nuclear, renewables, and transmission.
Environmental review was initially intended to identify and assess environmental impacts, not become an indefinite obstacle to building.
Whatever your preferred energy mix, permitting reform is necessary so America can build it!
My take on the new permitting reform bill @ForeignPolicy. It is among the most important policy measures in decades to advance clean energy, meet rising energy needs, and rein in soaring energy prices--and very likely to lead to a net reduction in carbon emissions. When paired with strong climate policy, it is also necessary to allow the rapid buildout of infrastructure needed to drive emissions sharply down. Rejecting it because it may also benefit oil and gas projects would sacrifice a historic opportunity to advance American security, affordability, and clean energy goals simultaneously.
foreignpolicy.com/2026/10/14…
Important point from @RealEJAntoni: Banks generally want to serve lawful customers. But when regulators and examiners rely on subjective standards like rep risk, banks have an incentive to anticipate Washington's political and ideological priorities rather than simply assess financial risk.
That's the underlying problem reform needs to address.
townhall.com/columnists/ej-a…
Agree with @EconWithNick. The OCC's findings reinforce why government-imposed reputational risk was a problem in the first place.
Removing it from bank supervision was an important first step. Congress should make that reform permanent through the FIRM Act while also addressing the BSA/AML incentives that can drive unnecessary debanking.
American banks are caught between two kinds of punishment. If they miss dirty money, regulators fine them. If they flag it and close the account, they get sued for debanking.
247wallst.com/investing/2026…
David Ibsen retweeted
AFFM applauds lawmakers for working across the aisle to cut unnecessary red tape, lower costs and give American businesses the certainty they need to invest, build and grow.
Congress should keep the bipartisan momentum going.
forfreemarkets.org/affm-appl…
But the northeastern United States does not have enough pipelines to fully meet New England’s demand for gas. As a result, the region imports L.N.G., which trades on global markets at a higher price than pipeline gas. This gas scarcity has not caused abundant clean energy to magically materialize in New England.
The clean energy provisions of the permitting deal are very good — and the fossil fuel provisions are mostly good too!
slowboring.com/p/the-permitt…
Faced with the sudden loss of export demand, refiners would soon reduce operations. Moreover, because refineries produce several fuels together, lower refinery runs would also reduce supplies of gasoline and jet fuel, causing prices for those products to rise.
In my latest column @ForeignPolicy, coauthored with @Bob_McNally (who served under Bush43 in same role I had under Obama), we argue that banning diesel exports would backfire. Rather than lowering prices, in the longer term it would harm the U.S. economically and geopolitically and undermine this administration's own energy dominance agenda. foreignpolicy.com/2026/09/29…
David Ibsen retweeted
A diesel export ban would interfere with the market precisely when energy markets are under extraordinary stress.
Diesel is a globally-traded commodity, and its price is ultimately determined by market forces—not government mandates.
@AmerComm @consumerpal American Energy Leadership Institute @ForFreeMarkets @AFPhq @taxreformer @C3SolutionsNews @CFEconomy @CFandP @CFIFonline @ceidotorg @ConservAmerica @CASE_forAmerica @ConsumerChoiceC @FamBizCoalition Frontiers of Freedom @HispLeadFund @IPI Main Street Foundation @MarketInstitute @MtnStatesPolicy @PelicanInst @RioGrandeFndn @SBECouncil @southwestpolicy @Protectaxpayers @JoinYoungVoices
To think about this issue clearly, start with this basic truth: banks want customers. They want to do business with almost every possible lawful customer, because they don’t make money by banning customers.
Good piece on the problem of debanking and how to fix it from @kerpen
cagle.com/columnist/phil-ker…
Pleasure to chat with Drew Steele and @FLVoiceNews about gov driven debanking and the need for Congress to pass the FIRM Act!
🚨DAVID IBSEN (@dlibsen): "President Trump last year, he issued an executive order banning [de-banking], [...] what we'd like to see happen now is that executive order become law so that the next president, the next administration, can't kind of go back to how it was before."
Correct. When AI is used to commit fraud, theft, discrimination, or privacy violations, the first question should be how existing law applies — not how quickly lawmakers can create another blanket restriction, regulation, or law.
🎯🎯New England sits near the Marcellus — North America’s largest natural gas field — yet limited pipeline capacity in the region, particularly during periods of peak winter demand, can leave it more dependent on imported LNG that is generally more expensive than domestic pipeline gas.
David Ibsen retweeted
New York just imposed America's first statewide moratorium on hyperscale data centers – infrastructure that powers AI and the digital economy.
While AI emerges as a defining innovation, New York is choosing to shut it down.
@dlibsen in @NRO on why that's the wrong path:
New York’s data center moratorium misunderstands artificial intelligence. | @dlibsen
nationalreview.com/2026/09/d…
In 2014, New York banned hydraulic fracturing. Communities in NY's Southern Tier watched neighboring Pennsylvania benefit from energy investment, jobs and tax revenue that NY chose to forgo.
Data centers aren't gas wells, but the lesson is the same: blanket bans don't eliminate economic opportunity but instead move it elsewhere. Read my latest in @NRO:
nationalreview.com/2026/09/d…
David Ibsen retweeted
Don’t Let Fear Drive AI Policy
"Last week, Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon resigned, warning of an “endgame” in which artificial intelligence companies could help determine humanity’s fate. It is the latest apocalyptic warning to fuel fear and misunderstanding around AI, but it matters because speculative fears can produce very real policy mistakes. New York offers a timely example: Governor Kathy Hochul recently imposed the nation’s first statewide moratorium on new hyperscale data centers — the infrastructure that powers AI and much of the modern digital economy."
nationalreview.com/2026/09/d…
Americans may not understand the permitting process, but they certainly feel its consequences. Lengthy reviews and bureaucratic hurdles are a major reason America struggles to build the reliable energy infrastructure we need.
America’s permitting system has become a maze of duplicative reviews, endless studies, procedural hurdles, and bureaucratic delays that keep worthwhile projects tied up for years without meaningfully improving environmental outcomes.
But Congress has the chance to deliver needed reforms for taxpayers.
realclearenergy.org/articles…
David Ibsen retweeted
America’s permitting system has become a maze of duplicative reviews, endless studies, procedural hurdles, and bureaucratic delays that keep worthwhile projects tied up for years without meaningfully improving environmental outcomes.
But Congress has the chance to deliver needed reforms for taxpayers.
realclearenergy.org/articles…
This week, the TX Senate is examining 'debanking'. In this new piece I argue that Texas lawmakers are right to take the problem seriously, but government-driven debanking is rooted in federal policy and demands a federal solution: riograndeguardian.com/storie… #simplesharebuttons
As negotiations over permitting reform continue...Congress has an opportunity to modernize an outdated system, reduce wait times, and unlock thousands of projects that are ready to power America’s homes and businesses @AdvEnergyUnited @hmnoneill
washingtonexaminer.com/op-ed…
