The Biden administration is supporting an embattled natural gas project championed by Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin — angering climate advocates and prompting some Capitol Hill Democrats to question the president’s motives.

Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm voiced support in a letter to regulators this week for the $6.6 billion Mountain Valley pipeline, which would carry gas 303 miles through West Virginia and Virginia to mid-Atlantic and Southeastern markets.

It’s not sitting well with progressive lawmakers and environmentalists, who are still burning after the administration approved a massive oil project in Alaska. They call Mountain Valley a climate and health hazard.

The project, which would cross hundreds of bodies of water and private land parcels, would release roughly 40 million metric tons of planet-warming pollution — the equivalent of more than 10 coal plants’ annual emissions.

Some lawmakers smell chicanery.

“This has all the hallmarks of a backroom, Faustian deal with Joe Manchin,” Rep. Jared Huffman of California, a senior Democrat on the House Natural Resources Committee, told Emma Dumain and Miranda Willson.

The Energy Department declined to comment on Granholm’s letter.

Wheeling and dealing: Because the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has already approved Mountain Valley (though it’s held up in legal proceedings), critics say Granholm’s letter of support could be an olive branch to Manchin.

The West Virginia Democrat, who chairs the Senate energy committee, has stalled the confirmation process for FERC’s fifth commissioner, leaving the agency vulnerable to political stalemates on critical decisions. Additionally, President Joe Biden needs all Democrats — including Manchin — to stand united against Republican attempts to extract concessions in exchange for raising the debt ceiling. On the GOP wish list: repealing key sections of Biden’s landmark climate law.

Manchin has repeatedly trashed the administration’s implementation of the Inflation Reduction Act. He agreed to vote for the climate bill last year only after Democratic leaders promised to pursue a permitting overhaul to fast-track energy projects, including Mountain Valley. But the deal quickly fell apart after opposition from Republicans and progressive Democrats.

Manchin’s still unhappy: Granholm’s support for the pipeline doesn’t appear to be persuading Manchin, who has continued to disparage the administration’s rollout of the Inflation Reduction Act. On Monday, he said he would vote in favor of its repeal if the White House continues its “radical climate agenda.”

It’s Tuesday — thank you for tuning in to POLITICO’s Power Switch. I’m your host, Arianna Skibell. Power Switch is brought to you by the journalists behind E&E News and POLITICO Energy. Send your tips, comments, questions to [email protected]

Today in POLITICO Energy’s podcast: Jordan Wolman breaks down why state officials on both sides of the political aisle are considering creating carbon offset programs to monetize their state lands.

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The move stands to accelerate nearly two dozen climate lawsuits filed by states and municipalities that have been stalled for years. The lawsuits ask for compensation to help pay for local responses to the effects of climate change.

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As Biden makes his pitch to voters, his record on climate and the environment — and promises about what he’d do with another four years in office — are certain to be central themes.

Germany and China summit
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is keen to advance economic and climate cooperation with China and defuse tensions over Taiwan as part of high-level government talks he plans to host in June, writes Hans von der Burchard.

Berlin is eager to push China, which accounts for nearly one-third of global carbon dioxide emissions, to take on a more ambitious role in fighting climate change and to halt its (not-so-indirect) support for Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Awkward sauce: Republican lawmakers on the House Energy and Commerce Committee sent a letter to Granholm inquiring about her use of taxpayer money to fund “international travel,” citing Puerto Rico as the main example in a press release. The only problem is Puerto Rico is a territory of the United States, not a foreign country.

Say goodbye to affordability: General Motors said it will scrap the Chevy Bolt, its most popular and least expensive electric vehicle, which was also eligible to receive generous tax credits from Biden’s climate law.

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EPA is moving forward with a proposed update to hazardous air pollutant standards for some of the nation’s largest steel mills.

The Pentagon is taking steps to develop remotely piloted, electrically powered aircraft that could one day fly wounded troops out of the battlefield and ferry spare parts to faraway bases.

West Virginia regulators approved a plan Monday that aims to save one of the state’s largest coal plants, marking a major win for the state’s political leadership and the coal industry.

That’s it for today, folks! Thanks for reading.