The Biden family just came out to announce Joe Biden’s cancer diagnosis. But that’s not all that’s coming out.
And Joe Biden’s week just got even worse with this incriminating report going public.
Biden’s Energy Department Fumbles Billions in Grid Funding, Leaving Taxpayers Exposed
The Biden administration’s handling of the U.S. energy grid funding was a masterclass in incompetence, marked by a reckless rush to distribute billions of taxpayer dollars without proper oversight or staffing. An internal investigation by the Department of Energy’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) revealed a shocking lack of financial controls and resources in the Grid Deployment Office (GDO), which administered the Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships Program (GRIP). The findings expose a pattern of mismanagement that jeopardized taxpayer money and undermined the nation’s energy infrastructure.
In October 2024, the Department of Energy (DOE) shoveled out $7.6 billion to 105 projects across the U.S. under the GRIP program, part of a $10.5 billion allocation from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The initiative aimed to bolster grid resilience, but the OIG’s report, released in May 2025, found that the GDO was woefully unprepared to manage such a massive undertaking. The office lacked an effective internal controls system to mitigate risks, leaving the door wide open for fraud, waste, and conflicts of interest.
“Without a robust internal controls system, GDO may not identify risks that could negatively impact the GRIP program’s outcomes,” the OIG report stated. “These impacts could include improperly reimbursed costs, fraud, waste, and undisclosed conflicts of interest.” This isn’t just a bureaucratic oversight—it’s a failure that could cost taxpayers dearly while jeopardizing the very grid the program was meant to strengthen.
The GDO’s failures weren’t isolated. The broader DOE, under Biden’s leadership, displayed a troubling pattern of financial recklessness. During a House Appropriations hearing in May 2025, Trump’s Energy Secretary Chris Wright revealed that the DOE’s Loans Program Office issued $100 billion in loans for energy projects in the final 76 days of the Biden administration—more than doubling the $40 billion issued over the previous 15 years. These rushed agreements often lacked standard DOE clauses, raising serious questions about due diligence.
Back in October 2023, the GDO had already doled out $3.46 billion to 58 projects across 44 states, targeting grid modernization to combat extreme weather and natural disasters. The program also aimed to enhance transmission system capacity, a critical need for a nation grappling with increasing energy demands. Yet, the OIG found that the GDO failed to adhere to the Government Accountability Office’s Green Book standards for financial controls, a basic requirement for federal programs.
The Biden administration doubled down in October 2024, awarding another $4.2 billion to 46 projects across 47 states. One notable recipient was the California Energy Commission, which snagged $630 million to upgrade 100 miles of transmission lines with grid-enhancing technologies to better connect wind and solar farms. California Governor Gavin Newsom praised the move, saying, “Once again, the Biden-Harris Administration is not just talking the talk, they’re walking the walk. This funding is critical to our efforts to build a power grid that ensures all Californians have access to cleaner, cheaper, more reliable electricity.” But Newsom’s enthusiasm glosses over the chaos behind the scenes.
The OIG report noted that as of September 2024, the GDO was still negotiating with 44 applicants for funding, having executed only 13 grant awards. This sluggish pace, combined with the absence of a documented internal control system, highlights the administration’s inability to manage its ambitious energy agenda. The GDO’s failure to conduct risk assessments, as required by the Green Book, further compounded the problem, leaving the program vulnerable to mismanagement.
To make matters worse, the GDO outsourced much of its work to the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), which was tasked with planning, reviewing, and administering awards. But the OIG found that the GDO didn’t even bother to oversee NETL’s procedures adequately. This lack of accountability mirrors past DOE failures, such as the 2013 Smart Grid Demonstration Program, where $12.3 million in questionable reimbursements slipped through due to insufficient oversight.
The GDO’s staffing shortages only added fuel to the fire. The office lacked the personnel needed to manage the GRIP program effectively, and officials provided no evidence that they had incorporated Green Book principles into their operations. This isn’t just negligence—it’s a systemic failure that reflects the Biden administration’s inability to execute its own policies.
The OIG’s recommendations were clear: the GDO must develop an effective internal controls system and create a plan to ensure GRIP’s processes are adequate. Management agreed to implement these changes by March 31, 2026, but disputed many of the OIG’s findings, claiming they had developed sufficient controls and overseen NETL’s procedures. The OIG wasn’t buying it, stating, “As demonstrated in the report, GDO did not furnish objective evidence of a documented internal controls systems.”
The GDO’s proposed timeline for fixes is another red flag. The OIG warned that delaying implementation until 2026 could expose the DOE to further risks. This leisurely approach underscores the Biden administration’s lack of urgency in addressing critical flaws, leaving taxpayers to bear the consequences of their ineptitude.
The GRIP program’s goals—modernizing the grid, improving resilience, and supporting clean energy—are undeniably important. But the Biden administration’s execution was a disaster, marked by rushed decisions and a blatant disregard for financial accountability. The $7.6 billion in grants and $100 billion in loans distributed in the administration’s final days were less about securing the nation’s energy future and more about political posturing before the 2024 election.
The California project, while touted as a win by Newsom, exemplifies the administration’s misplaced priorities. Upgrading transmission lines for wind and solar is a noble goal, but without proper oversight, such projects risk becoming boondoggles. The GDO’s failure to ensure NETL’s compliance and its own staffing shortages suggest that these funds may not deliver the promised results.
Past DOE failures, like the 2013 Smart Grid fiasco, should have been a wake-up call. Yet, the Biden administration repeated the same mistakes on a grander scale, throwing billions at projects without the infrastructure to manage them. The OIG’s findings are a damning indictment of an administration that prioritized optics over competence.
The Biden team’s energy legacy is one of squandered opportunities and exposed vulnerabilities. The GRIP program, meant to fortify the nation’s grid, instead revealed a department stretched thin, lacking the basic systems to protect public funds.
