How Solar Donors Helped Take Down A Trump-backed Republican

An aggressive new political action committee backed by renewable energy supporters claimed its biggest and clearest win yet Thursday by helping unseat conservative Republican Rep. Andy Ogles of Tennessee despite President Donald Trump's vocal support.

The Invest in Tomorrow Coalition PAC spent $2 million opposing Ogles and boosting Republican primary opponent Charlie Hatcher — more than both candidates combined — and the group is now poised to be a force in future contests.

Ogles was the third Republican this year to lose a race after being targeted by the super PAC, launched by solar executives wanting to get back at Republicans who actively work against renewables.

"[W]e will continue to punish members of either party who want to play politics with American jobs, energy security, and utility prices. The entire map is in play and we will take this fight across the country through November," Tom Matzzie, CEO of solar company CleanChoice Energy and chair of Invest in Tomorrow Coalition, said in a statement.

The group's ads did not mention clean energy, instead targeting conservative voters with advertisements that boosted Hatcher’s right-wing credentials andchided Ogles for missing votes.

The PAC deployed a similar playbook against Texas Rep. Chip Roy in his unsuccessful attorney general bid and South Carolina Rep. Ralph Norman, who lost his campaign for governor.

Lawmakers like Ogles, Roy and Norman pushed Republican leaders in Congress last year for a quick phaseout of renewable energy incentives in what became the One Big Beautiful Bill act.

"The clean energy industry's political muscle is only getting stronger and more intimidating. So our hope here is that clean energy will go back to being a bipartisan issue, and maybe one of the few issues that all Americans can agree on. But before we get there, we've got to continue our retribution tour and take out a few more members who have voted the wrong way," said Michael Brune, former executive director of the Sierra Club and co-founder of the Invest in Tomorrow Coalition.

Chris Larsen — the PAC's top backer, who has contributed $6 million of its $6.8 million — has called its advocacy "political warfare." “The worst that you want in a political fight is for your opponents to think you’re weak," he said at a May event.

The group incorporates lessons learned from the crypto industry, where Larsen was the co-founder of Ripple Labs. Ripple helped fund Fairshake, a super PAC that has spent more than $200 million to unseat unfriendly politicians. Larsen also leads the environmental philanthropy Clean Break Fund with Brune.

Ogles tore into the Invest in Tomorrow Coalition as voters were going to the polls Thursday, proudly taking credit for the tax credit rollbacks and saying the government shouldn’t be supporting “some libtard in California that’s a billionaire" — an apparent reference to Larsen.

"They literally are trying to make an example out of me to try to strike fear in other Republicans. Which is why, if they prevail, this will have a chilling effect to the conservatives in Congress," Ogles said on Nashville’s Morning News, a radio show.

The 5th District race — a safe Republican seat — was not on the national radar until recent weeks. Invest in Tomorrow got into the race following a poll it commissioned last month that had Ogles at 36.9 percent support among likely primary voters, just four points ahead of Hatcher.

The group's $2 million in spending in Tennessee's 5th District fight overshadowed Ogles' $632,000 and Hatcher's $614,000. The numbers are based on last disclosures filed, which go to July 17,

The only other super PAC spending in the race has been Freedom Caucus Fund — tied to the hard-right House Freedom Caucus — with $789,000 in favor of Ogles and against Hatcher.

A Republican strategist, granted anonymity to speak candidly, said he wasn't worried about the clean energy group's impact on the GOP because it was going against select hard right figures.

“I'm not all worried about the impact on members," said the strategist, who supports Thatcher but was not involved in the race. "That PAC is doing what any sophisticated [independent expenditure committee] does that hates the Ogles type — get rid of the filth for a governing conservative in a red seat."

Hatcher got a boost when Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee (R) endorsed him in recent days. A veterinarian, Hatcher was state agriculture commissioner under Lee from 2019 to 2025.

Trump got involved to bolster Ogles. "I’m asking all of you to get out and vote for Andy Ogles. He’s been a friend of mine. He’s been a terrific guy," the president said during a July 28 tele-rally.

Trump's support for Ogles stands in contrast to other races where the pro-renewable energy PAC has spent money. The president notably snubbed both Norman and Roy in their contests.

Roy earlier this year downplayed the group's impact. “They had zero impact … and [happily] burned their money in a campaign where my opponent bought the election with $30 million,” Roy said in a statement, referencing Texas state Sen. Mayes Middleton.

Norman is now in a crowded Republican primary for Senate to replace the late-Sen. Lindsey Graham. The Invest in Tomorrow Coalition has not reported spending in that race.

The PAC's gloves-off approach may be showing conservatives the power of clean energy money, but that doesn't mean other industry advocates are following its lead.

The Solar Energy Industries Association, which recently brought on former Republican Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty as its president, isn’t planning to start attacking candidates.

“We’re in the business of making friends, not making enemies,” Pawlenty said on the POLITICO Energy podcast last month. “There’s other outside groups who may want to do that. Our goal is to try to solar in a positive, constructive way and support people who support the policies that will be beneficial to advancing renewable, clean, reliable, quick energy."

In addition to the spending against lawmakers, the Invest in Tomorrow PAC in June supported Iowa Republican Rep. Marinnette Miller-Meeks in her primary race with $125,000 in spending. Miller-Meeks leads the Conservative Climate Caucus and helped ease the phaseout of wind and solar credits.