John Curtis, the new Utah senator who made his name in the House by pushing conservatives to acknowledge climate change, has a new target: President Donald Trump.
In fact, the soft-spoken 64-year-old was optimistic he might be able to get through to the man who just four months ago suggested climate change simply meant that the sea level might “rise one-eighth of an inch in 400 years, … and you’d have more seafront property.”
Curtis, who was selected to chair an Environment and Public Works subcommittee last week, thinks he could do with Trump what he did with more than the 80 House Republicans he corralled to his Conservative Climate Caucus, which he launched in 2021 with the goal of educating the GOP on climate policies in a space that embraces conservative, free market principles.
“We’re just not as far apart as he might think or as other people might think,” Curtis told POLITICO’s E&E News last month, a comment sure to raise eyebrows.
Curtis said that when he meets with Trump, he would extend a sense of compassion for his views. An aide to Curtis said later the two would meet “in due time but nothing on the books yet.”
“The first thing with President Trump is kind of to confirm where you are at — and [say], ‘By the way, that’s OK with me. Let me share some thoughts with you, let me share from my perspective of how Republicans feel,'” Curtis said.
“I would love to play that role with him,” Curtis said. “And I think we could have a great conversation.”
Never mind that Trump endorsed Curtis’ opponent in the Senate primary to replace former Sen. Mitt Romney. And never mind that Trump has already dismantled the White House climate website and signed dozens of energy actions that aim to halt rules to cut greenhouse gas emissions, kneecap wind power and increase fossil fuel production.
In a statement issued after the deluge of Day 1 executive orders, Curtis praised Trump’s early actions, apparently finding no contradiction between his goals of climate awareness and Trump’s bold plans to reverse greenhouse gas regulations and ramp up fossil fuel production.
“Our energy future will be affordable, reliable and clean,” Curtis said. “I’m pleased to see the President unlock our natural resources — unleashing our economic potential and bolstering our national security,” he said, adding that the “path to energy domination drives right through Utah” and promised to tackle permitting challenges and “build consensus.”
Adjusting to the Senate
In a temporary basement office ahead of Trump’s inauguration, Curtis dismissed much of Trump’s wild — and oftentimes false — commentary on climate and energy.
He generally was pleased that Americans don’t seem to be “overreacting” to some of Trump’s online or in-person “bravados.” And he was happy that, unlike the first Trump administration, Democrats appear willing to try to find ways to work with the president to drive their priorities over the next four years.
This time around, there’s not a five-alarm fire after every social media post, Curtis said. “Even Bernie Sanders is saying, ‘I’m sure there’s some stuff we can work on. … That didn’t happen eight years ago.”

Curtis simply smiled when asked about Trump’s anti-wind Truth Social post declaring he did not want one “windmill” built during his administration and that the “thousands of dead and broken ones should be ripped down ASAP.”
He did not respond directly to the thrust of the post but said it was a “really good example” of a Trump comment observers this time might not take literally.
Trump meant what he has said about the wind industry. On his first day, he issued an executive order temporarily withdrawing federal waters from wind energy leasing, going against years of Republican “all-of-the-above” energy talking points.
In person, Curtis blends sharp attire with an “aw, shucks” demeanor. He exuded a fair amount of humility for his new role in the club of 100 elected officials in the upper chamber of Congress.
“I am so incredibly pleased and surprised at how natural it is and how warm,” he said, sitting next to a box of campaign merchandise — dozens of his signature “Curtis Crew” socks, many embroidered with the red, blue and yellow Utah flag.
“I think being approximately one-fourth in size than the House doesn’t make it one-fourth easier — it makes it exponentially easier. It’s a number everyone can get their arms around.”
He added: “I can have a relationship with everyone here.”
Already, he said he met with a Democratic senator on climate-related issues “that are really important to both of our states,” but declined to disclose further details.
He’s serving on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, where he will chair the Subcommittee on Chemical Safety, Waste Management, Environmental Justice and Regulatory Oversight.
Getting the gavel amounts to a vote of confidence from Chair Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.). In a brief interview, Capito offered a glowing review of his time working on climate issues in the House, specifically mentioning permitting reform.
“I think he knows the issues,” she said, brushing off a question about whether she considers him a “moderate.” “He has different issues because he’s from the West that I might have in the East — but I think he’s spent a lot of time in this area so I wouldn’t characterize him as a moderate.”
Talking up climate with nominees
Curtis told Axios he has already made a “connection” with Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) — both of whom have displayed a willingness to defy Trump.
At a recent POLITICO event, he aired doubts about national intelligence pick Tulsi Gabbard and was undecided about Defense nominee Pete Hegseth — though he eventually supported the latter.
He also told Axios that he has made clear to GOP leaders they should not simply take his vote for granted. He has so far gone along with Trump picks.
With every nominee he’s met with, Curtis said he talked about his Conservative Climate Caucus work in the House.
“I want to make sure they understand it — make sure they understand what the message was,” he said. “And every one of them have been like, ‘Oh, that’s great.’”

Curtis, a former Democrat, said he had a particularly good conversation with Trump’s health department pick Robert F. Kennedy Jr. about regenerative agriculture — which could remove greenhouse gas emissions from the atmosphere.
“We really connected on regenerative ag. Each nominee has their currency — and that was one that we found a real connection,” said the senator.
Curtis essentially had the GOP climate lane all to himself in the House. In the Senate, he’ll join numerous climate-minded Republicans, including Collins, Murkowski, Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) along with others.
During his campaign for Senate, Curtis sometimes shied from touting his climate credentials, instead focusing on energy and land use issues.
Curtis disputes that charge. At the same time, he did say he didn’t want his Senate race to be a “referendum” on his climate work, and he said his constituents cared about the deficit and immigration.
Reconciliation thoughts
When asked about the GOP’s planning on budget reconciliation — which could target hundreds of billions of dollars worth of subsidies for renewable energy projects — he offered a wait-and-see approach.
“I think all the conversations — with the exception of some policy we set in 2017 — is still at 30,000 feet,” he said. “So it’s hard to say I’m comfortable with it, because we just don’t know exactly…”
He then pointed to his joining 17 other House colleagues last year to urge Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) to spare climate-related spending in the Inflation Reduction Act.

“Look, count me in the camp that is very, very concerned about our spending. But I also signed the letter to Mike Johnson, and the reason I did was because there were a lot of Republican priorities in that,” he said. “But also I’m not willing to pull the rug out from American businesses, when we said, ‘This is the deal,’ and then a year later said, ‘This is not the deal.’”
More broadly, even as an increasing number of Republicans, like new EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin, say they believe climate change is real, the Trump relentlessly rejects the issue. But for Curtis, Trump’s recalcitrance is a nonissue.
“It doesn’t worry me,” he said. “From the beginning, I have been dealing with people who struggle with this. And I think a lot of the reasons they struggle is because what’s put forward as the solution — I’m just filling in that blank with the Green New Deal — is untenable.”
He said the beauty of the climate caucus was to show Republicans the benefits of nuclear, hydrogen and cleaner-burning fossil fuels.
“I think one of the problems with the climate movement has been demanding that if you don’t see things the way we do, you’re bad. And I think the success of the caucus was … you’re not judged.”