It's beginning to look a lot like midterms. That's the sense when you look at all of the proposals to address what seems to be the election's key issue: energy affordability.

Starting in the White House, President Trump hosted business leaders yesterday to roll out his "ratepayer protection pledge," which was signed by Google, Microsoft, OpenAI and more and it has tech companies pledging to build, provide or buy any power their data center infrastructure needs. It's designed to ensure residents don't pay for the electricity used to power data centers. The President said in making the announcement that Americans' energy prices could drop "very substantially" as a result.

Over on the Democrat side of the aisle, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said yesterday that Democrats are set to release a plan to lower energy costs as part of its so-called "cost agenda" for 2026, described as a broader effort to confront affordability issues. No details are available yet on their energy price plan, but it's certainly one we'll be watching.

Finally, on a trip to Venezuela yesterday, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum called on investors to look to the country's rich minerals resources, much of which is located in the country's remote southern regions. Burgum said, "Venezuela is a rich, rich country filled with both oil and gas resources but also rich in critical minerals. The opportunities now are greater than ever." Not discussed were security concerns in a region home to powerful armed gangs and guerrilla groups.