So we know that the US climate law is already working

How do you know when you have a hit on your hands? If your competitors complain about it.

Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, said last weekend that the US Inflation Reduction Act represents a “bold new industrial policy” and that Europe needs a “structural response”.

Von der Leyen’s measured words contrast sharply with some of his previous statements and those of other EU officials.

The first signs that the one-two punch of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act and the IRA were dealing potentially devastating blows came in October, when the EU Competition Commissioner specifically called the IRA an “imbalanced subsidy”. The French finance minister at the time, Bruno Le Maire, said the IRA “could have a big impact on European industry” and that allowing it was a “major problem for us”. Last week, French President Emanuel Macron ramped up the rhetoric, calling for the law to be made “super-aggressive” against European companies.

After years of trying to convince the US to take more action on climate change, Europe finally got an answer. The problem is that it wasn’t what they wanted.