Clark Mindock
@clarkmindock.bsky.social
Climate law & insurance regs reporter.
•Insurance writing is here: https://www.insuranceinsiderus.com/clark-mindock
•My Substack “Landmark” covers climate law: www.landmark.earth
Formerly Reuters, Law360, The Independent, etc.
•Insurance writing is here: https://www.insuranceinsiderus.com/clark-mindock
•My Substack “Landmark” covers climate law: www.landmark.earth
Formerly Reuters, Law360, The Independent, etc.
Reposted by Clark Mindock
Amid the Wests water crisis, Arizona reached a deal this week with a dairy farm that has depleted local groundwater.
It’ll fallow 2,000 acres, implement best practices & give millions to local residents.
But my Q is how useful all that’ll be in the long run
insideclimatenews.org/news/1001202...
It’ll fallow 2,000 acres, implement best practices & give millions to local residents.
But my Q is how useful all that’ll be in the long run
insideclimatenews.org/news/1001202...
Arizona Comes to Agreement With Major Dairy Farm to Cut Groundwater Pumping That Is Draining Wells - Inside Climate News
Willcox is ground zero for Arizona’s groundwater crisis. The state’s settlement with Riverview, the company draining the town’s aquifer, requires it to fallow fields and compensate affected well owner...
insideclimatenews.org
January 10, 2026 at 3:47 PM
Amid the Wests water crisis, Arizona reached a deal this week with a dairy farm that has depleted local groundwater.
It’ll fallow 2,000 acres, implement best practices & give millions to local residents.
But my Q is how useful all that’ll be in the long run
insideclimatenews.org/news/1001202...
It’ll fallow 2,000 acres, implement best practices & give millions to local residents.
But my Q is how useful all that’ll be in the long run
insideclimatenews.org/news/1001202...
Amid the Wests water crisis, Arizona reached a deal this week with a dairy farm that has depleted local groundwater.
It’ll fallow 2,000 acres, implement best practices & give millions to local residents.
But my Q is how useful all that’ll be in the long run
insideclimatenews.org/news/1001202...
It’ll fallow 2,000 acres, implement best practices & give millions to local residents.
But my Q is how useful all that’ll be in the long run
insideclimatenews.org/news/1001202...
Arizona Comes to Agreement With Major Dairy Farm to Cut Groundwater Pumping That Is Draining Wells - Inside Climate News
Willcox is ground zero for Arizona’s groundwater crisis. The state’s settlement with Riverview, the company draining the town’s aquifer, requires it to fallow fields and compensate affected well owner...
insideclimatenews.org
January 10, 2026 at 3:47 PM
Amid the Wests water crisis, Arizona reached a deal this week with a dairy farm that has depleted local groundwater.
It’ll fallow 2,000 acres, implement best practices & give millions to local residents.
But my Q is how useful all that’ll be in the long run
insideclimatenews.org/news/1001202...
It’ll fallow 2,000 acres, implement best practices & give millions to local residents.
But my Q is how useful all that’ll be in the long run
insideclimatenews.org/news/1001202...
“Coal plants — and in particular the plants DOE has targeted — are these clunky old jalopies that, out of nowhere, just fail,” said Michael Lenoff, a senior attorney at nonprofit law firm Earthjustice.
Insane story from @jeffstjohn.bsky.social:
Trump admin has ordered coal plants with inoperable units to stay online, forcing their owners to make costly repairs to facilities that are totally uneconomical to run.
Utility customers will likely bear the costs.
www.canarymedia.com/articles/fos...
Trump admin has ordered coal plants with inoperable units to stay online, forcing their owners to make costly repairs to facilities that are totally uneconomical to run.
Utility customers will likely bear the costs.
www.canarymedia.com/articles/fos...
Trump admin’s must-run orders put broken-down coal plants in a bind
Utilities are already paying to keep aging coal plants open under DOE emergency orders. New demands to revive nonfunctioning units add costs and legal…
www.canarymedia.com
January 9, 2026 at 8:29 PM
“Coal plants — and in particular the plants DOE has targeted — are these clunky old jalopies that, out of nowhere, just fail,” said Michael Lenoff, a senior attorney at nonprofit law firm Earthjustice.
Reposted by Clark Mindock
“I’m not prejudging the facts or the circumstances of the case. I’m simply saying that Mr. Vice President Vance is wrong on the law, or he’s deliberately misrepresenting it to the American people,” AG Ellison said, adding ICE crackdown is “third reich stuff”
www.democracynow.org/2026/1/9/min...
www.democracynow.org/2026/1/9/min...
“What Are You Hiding?” Minnesota AG Keith Ellison Says ICE Killing of Renee Good Must Be Investigated
Minnesota state investigators say the FBI is blocking them from investigating the ICE shooting of Renee Good, a mother of three and award-winning poet who was killed in her car on January 7. The feder...
www.democracynow.org
January 9, 2026 at 4:59 PM
“I’m not prejudging the facts or the circumstances of the case. I’m simply saying that Mr. Vice President Vance is wrong on the law, or he’s deliberately misrepresenting it to the American people,” AG Ellison said, adding ICE crackdown is “third reich stuff”
www.democracynow.org/2026/1/9/min...
www.democracynow.org/2026/1/9/min...
“I’m not prejudging the facts or the circumstances of the case. I’m simply saying that Mr. Vice President Vance is wrong on the law, or he’s deliberately misrepresenting it to the American people,” AG Ellison said, adding ICE crackdown is “third reich stuff”
www.democracynow.org/2026/1/9/min...
www.democracynow.org/2026/1/9/min...
“What Are You Hiding?” Minnesota AG Keith Ellison Says ICE Killing of Renee Good Must Be Investigated
Minnesota state investigators say the FBI is blocking them from investigating the ICE shooting of Renee Good, a mother of three and award-winning poet who was killed in her car on January 7. The feder...
www.democracynow.org
January 9, 2026 at 4:59 PM
“I’m not prejudging the facts or the circumstances of the case. I’m simply saying that Mr. Vice President Vance is wrong on the law, or he’s deliberately misrepresenting it to the American people,” AG Ellison said, adding ICE crackdown is “third reich stuff”
www.democracynow.org/2026/1/9/min...
www.democracynow.org/2026/1/9/min...
Criminal law prof’s take on the potential for criminal charges after an ICE agent killed a woman in Minneapolis yesterday 👇
My initial take on the criminal law governing the ICE shooting in MN:
609.066 of the MN Code controls a self-defense claim for a "peace officer" under state law. I'm not going to consider federal law given the capture of the DOJ by the Trump administration. 1/
609.066 of the MN Code controls a self-defense claim for a "peace officer" under state law. I'm not going to consider federal law given the capture of the DOJ by the Trump administration. 1/
January 8, 2026 at 11:56 AM
Criminal law prof’s take on the potential for criminal charges after an ICE agent killed a woman in Minneapolis yesterday 👇
Finished my first book of the year: Rising by Elizabeth Rush.
Beautiful reporting on sea-level rise and the American communities already living with it. A reminder of how grounding it is to follow one careful thread all the way through for a while.
Beautiful reporting on sea-level rise and the American communities already living with it. A reminder of how grounding it is to follow one careful thread all the way through for a while.
January 8, 2026 at 2:42 AM
Finished my first book of the year: Rising by Elizabeth Rush.
Beautiful reporting on sea-level rise and the American communities already living with it. A reminder of how grounding it is to follow one careful thread all the way through for a while.
Beautiful reporting on sea-level rise and the American communities already living with it. A reminder of how grounding it is to follow one careful thread all the way through for a while.
“Although federal officers do have immunity in some circumstances, that protection applies only if their actions were authorized under federal law and “necessary and proper” in fulfilling federal duties. [If they] act unreasonably when carrying out their duties, they can face state charges.”
Wrote a piece for @slate.com explaining that states have a long history of prosecuting federal officers when they allegedly use excessive force. Federal officers are only immune from such prosecutions when they act reasonably in carrying out lawful duties.
Minnesota Could Prosecute the ICE Shooter. Trump Can’t Pardon Him.
Shortly after an ICE officer shot and killed a woman in Minneapolis, city leaders began looking into whether the officer had violated state criminal law.
slate.com
January 8, 2026 at 12:35 AM
“Although federal officers do have immunity in some circumstances, that protection applies only if their actions were authorized under federal law and “necessary and proper” in fulfilling federal duties. [If they] act unreasonably when carrying out their duties, they can face state charges.”
John Bolton supported ousting Maduro under Trump, but now tells Politico his former boss hasn’t prepared well and isn’t going far enough with the regime change (as a bonus: he thinks Trump’s focus on Venezuelan oil isn’t all that well thought out):
Q&A: John Bolton on Trump’s Venezuelan oil grab
“The idea that American oil companies are just lining up to go invest in Venezuela is just flatly wrong,” he told POLITICO's E&E News.
www.politico.com
January 7, 2026 at 9:00 PM
John Bolton supported ousting Maduro under Trump, but now tells Politico his former boss hasn’t prepared well and isn’t going far enough with the regime change (as a bonus: he thinks Trump’s focus on Venezuelan oil isn’t all that well thought out):
Reposted by Clark Mindock
"Ecuador is the only country in the world whose constitution recognizes nature’s rights to exist, regenerate and be restored, though hundreds of court rulings, local laws, nonbinding declarations and other initiatives worldwide recognize nature’s rights in some form. " 🐸
An Ecuadorian court has blocked construction of a highway after ruling it poses an imminent and irreversible threat to the rights of a critically endangered toad, a decision that underscores the country’s unique constitutional protections for nature.
insideclimatenews.org/news/0701202...
insideclimatenews.org/news/0701202...
Endangered Toad Wins Legal Victory Against Highway Construction in Ecuador - Inside Climate News
The court invoked Ecuador’s rights of nature laws in halting a highway project to protect the Jambato harlequin toad, requiring the government to prove construction won’t drive the species to extincti...
insideclimatenews.org
January 7, 2026 at 7:10 PM
"Ecuador is the only country in the world whose constitution recognizes nature’s rights to exist, regenerate and be restored, though hundreds of court rulings, local laws, nonbinding declarations and other initiatives worldwide recognize nature’s rights in some form. " 🐸
"Ecuador is the only country in the world whose constitution recognizes nature’s rights to exist, regenerate and be restored, though hundreds of court rulings, local laws, nonbinding declarations and other initiatives worldwide recognize nature’s rights in some form. " 🐸
An Ecuadorian court has blocked construction of a highway after ruling it poses an imminent and irreversible threat to the rights of a critically endangered toad, a decision that underscores the country’s unique constitutional protections for nature.
insideclimatenews.org/news/0701202...
insideclimatenews.org/news/0701202...
Endangered Toad Wins Legal Victory Against Highway Construction in Ecuador - Inside Climate News
The court invoked Ecuador’s rights of nature laws in halting a highway project to protect the Jambato harlequin toad, requiring the government to prove construction won’t drive the species to extincti...
insideclimatenews.org
January 7, 2026 at 7:10 PM
"Ecuador is the only country in the world whose constitution recognizes nature’s rights to exist, regenerate and be restored, though hundreds of court rulings, local laws, nonbinding declarations and other initiatives worldwide recognize nature’s rights in some form. " 🐸
An ICE agent shot and apparently killed a woman in her car today in Minneapolis.
It goes without saying — this should never happen. But police know better, too: after the George Floyd murder, LE guidelines were updated to prohibit firing into moving vehicles.
www.startribune.com/minneapolis-...
It goes without saying — this should never happen. But police know better, too: after the George Floyd murder, LE guidelines were updated to prohibit firing into moving vehicles.
www.startribune.com/minneapolis-...
January 7, 2026 at 6:25 PM
An ICE agent shot and apparently killed a woman in her car today in Minneapolis.
It goes without saying — this should never happen. But police know better, too: after the George Floyd murder, LE guidelines were updated to prohibit firing into moving vehicles.
www.startribune.com/minneapolis-...
It goes without saying — this should never happen. But police know better, too: after the George Floyd murder, LE guidelines were updated to prohibit firing into moving vehicles.
www.startribune.com/minneapolis-...
Reposted by Clark Mindock
Sigh. The NPR national news brief at the top of the hour mentioned the shooting and simply cited the DHS statement.
I truly don't think mainstream journalists in the U.S are prepared to cover state violence
January 7, 2026 at 6:04 PM
Sigh. The NPR national news brief at the top of the hour mentioned the shooting and simply cited the DHS statement.
Reposted by Clark Mindock
Is the EPA shutting the legal door on new science? At the behest of the chemical industry, it appears so: www.propublica.org/article/air-...
Trump’s EPA Could Limit Its Own Ability to Use New Science to Strengthen Air Pollution Rules
In government records that have flown under the radar, the EPA is questioning its legal authority to revise pollution rules more than once when new science shows unacceptable health risks.
www.propublica.org
January 7, 2026 at 5:20 PM
Is the EPA shutting the legal door on new science? At the behest of the chemical industry, it appears so: www.propublica.org/article/air-...
Catching up on this great article, a super interesting look into China’s clean energy dominance ambitions.
The country's overseas clean tech investment is helping drive decarbonization but also raising local community, environmental and human rights concerns:
insideclimatenews.org/news/1712202...
The country's overseas clean tech investment is helping drive decarbonization but also raising local community, environmental and human rights concerns:
insideclimatenews.org/news/1712202...
China’s Clean Energy Investments Abroad Are a Boon for Climate, but Human Rights and the Environment Are a Different Story - Inside Climate News
Chinese companies have pledged hundreds of billions of dollars in clean energy manufacturing investments overseas. The projects could help lower emissions, but they are having significant social, envi...
insideclimatenews.org
January 7, 2026 at 4:08 PM
Catching up on this great article, a super interesting look into China’s clean energy dominance ambitions.
The country's overseas clean tech investment is helping drive decarbonization but also raising local community, environmental and human rights concerns:
insideclimatenews.org/news/1712202...
The country's overseas clean tech investment is helping drive decarbonization but also raising local community, environmental and human rights concerns:
insideclimatenews.org/news/1712202...
Files outline potential cuts affecting thousands of FEMA disaster responders:
“These tables include a 41 percent reduction in CORE disaster roles, more than 4,300 positions. They also list reductions in surge staffing … by 85 percent, or nearly 6,500 roles.”
www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2026...
“These tables include a 41 percent reduction in CORE disaster roles, more than 4,300 positions. They also list reductions in surge staffing … by 85 percent, or nearly 6,500 roles.”
www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2026...
Files outline potential cuts affecting thousands of FEMA disaster responders
Any FEMA terminations are likely to come in waves, according to three people familiar with the plans.
www.washingtonpost.com
January 6, 2026 at 1:22 AM
Files outline potential cuts affecting thousands of FEMA disaster responders:
“These tables include a 41 percent reduction in CORE disaster roles, more than 4,300 positions. They also list reductions in surge staffing … by 85 percent, or nearly 6,500 roles.”
www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2026...
“These tables include a 41 percent reduction in CORE disaster roles, more than 4,300 positions. They also list reductions in surge staffing … by 85 percent, or nearly 6,500 roles.”
www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2026...
Reposted by Clark Mindock
“F*****g psyched!”
Ha! Real.
Check out this story where Mindock was a fly on the wall as we scheme up new city-level advocacy and campaign work under Mayor Mamdani. #GasFreeNYC 👀
Ha! Real.
Check out this story where Mindock was a fly on the wall as we scheme up new city-level advocacy and campaign work under Mayor Mamdani. #GasFreeNYC 👀
Organizers let me sit in on a strategy meeting they had shortly after Zohran Mamdani's election last month.
They're excited. But the progressive mayor-elect will undoubtedly face friction with Albany, whether on climate change or housing.
My latest in Landmark:
www.landmark.earth/p/environmen...
They're excited. But the progressive mayor-elect will undoubtedly face friction with Albany, whether on climate change or housing.
My latest in Landmark:
www.landmark.earth/p/environmen...
Environmentalists are ‘f****** psyched’ about Zohran Mamdani. What can he actually do about climate change?
The mayor-elect will have a lot of influence over bike lanes and the city’s implementation of Local Law 97. But the state's constitution will create friction with Albany.
www.landmark.earth
December 30, 2025 at 10:39 PM
“F*****g psyched!”
Ha! Real.
Check out this story where Mindock was a fly on the wall as we scheme up new city-level advocacy and campaign work under Mayor Mamdani. #GasFreeNYC 👀
Ha! Real.
Check out this story where Mindock was a fly on the wall as we scheme up new city-level advocacy and campaign work under Mayor Mamdani. #GasFreeNYC 👀
Organizers let me sit in on a strategy meeting they had shortly after Zohran Mamdani's election last month.
They're excited. But the progressive mayor-elect will undoubtedly face friction with Albany, whether on climate change or housing.
My latest in Landmark:
www.landmark.earth/p/environmen...
They're excited. But the progressive mayor-elect will undoubtedly face friction with Albany, whether on climate change or housing.
My latest in Landmark:
www.landmark.earth/p/environmen...
Environmentalists are ‘f****** psyched’ about Zohran Mamdani. What can he actually do about climate change?
The mayor-elect will have a lot of influence over bike lanes and the city’s implementation of Local Law 97. But the state's constitution will create friction with Albany.
www.landmark.earth
December 30, 2025 at 10:22 PM
Organizers let me sit in on a strategy meeting they had shortly after Zohran Mamdani's election last month.
They're excited. But the progressive mayor-elect will undoubtedly face friction with Albany, whether on climate change or housing.
My latest in Landmark:
www.landmark.earth/p/environmen...
They're excited. But the progressive mayor-elect will undoubtedly face friction with Albany, whether on climate change or housing.
My latest in Landmark:
www.landmark.earth/p/environmen...
Reposted by Clark Mindock
Scoop: The Trump admin is considering giving SpaceX nearly 800 acres in a federal wildlife refuge in Texas, according to documents reviewed by @nytimes.com www.nytimes.com/2025/12/23/c...
Trump May Give 775 Acres of a Federal Wildlife Refuge to SpaceX
www.nytimes.com
December 23, 2025 at 1:21 PM
Scoop: The Trump admin is considering giving SpaceX nearly 800 acres in a federal wildlife refuge in Texas, according to documents reviewed by @nytimes.com www.nytimes.com/2025/12/23/c...
Reposted by Clark Mindock
This Yglesias piece in the NYT is horrifically bad. Almost every "fact" it cites is provably false. At best it is cocktail party banter from a pundit who knows nothing of energy. At worst, it was cut/paste from oil industry talking points. So, a rebuttal: www.nytimes.com/2025/12/18/o...
Opinion | Obama Supported It. The Left in Canada and Norway Does. Why Don’t Democrats?
www.nytimes.com
December 20, 2025 at 2:57 PM
This Yglesias piece in the NYT is horrifically bad. Almost every "fact" it cites is provably false. At best it is cocktail party banter from a pundit who knows nothing of energy. At worst, it was cut/paste from oil industry talking points. So, a rebuttal: www.nytimes.com/2025/12/18/o...
Reposted by Clark Mindock
Matt Yglesias has a "Democrats should support more fossil fuel production" OpEd in the Times today, which criticizes me for saying that energy policy should try to uphold the goals of the Paris Agreement.
December 18, 2025 at 2:37 PM
Matt Yglesias has a "Democrats should support more fossil fuel production" OpEd in the Times today, which criticizes me for saying that energy policy should try to uphold the goals of the Paris Agreement.
Shoutout to my LinkedIn feed for keeping the main thing the main thing today.
December 9, 2025 at 3:47 PM
Shoutout to my LinkedIn feed for keeping the main thing the main thing today.
Here's the latest, by me, on the brewing insurance investigation in New York, where state lawmakers have been probing why homeowner/property rates are going up so fast:
Sen. Brian Kavanagh told me he isn't convinced by the insurance industry's explanations for the crisis, at least not yet.
Sen. Brian Kavanagh told me he isn't convinced by the insurance industry's explanations for the crisis, at least not yet.
December 5, 2025 at 2:22 PM
Here's the latest, by me, on the brewing insurance investigation in New York, where state lawmakers have been probing why homeowner/property rates are going up so fast:
Sen. Brian Kavanagh told me he isn't convinced by the insurance industry's explanations for the crisis, at least not yet.
Sen. Brian Kavanagh told me he isn't convinced by the insurance industry's explanations for the crisis, at least not yet.