Chances are, you saw headlines last week about Congress needing a 15th round of voting to elect Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy. That’s a level of chaos and dysfunction that hasn’t been seen since 1923, which makes it all the more striking that the same legislative body was able to pass a $1.7 trillion law just days earlier — quietly, with little fanfare. The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 will shower billions of dollars on clean energy programs — a record — to boost the sector. Any law that does that is controversial. To stay updated with top startup investments, sign up for Benzinga’s Startup Investing & Equity Crowdfunding NewsletterBut what matters from an investing perspective is this: Exactly two years before — and also in the dead of night — President Donald Trump signed a law that was similarly heralded as “the most significant climate…
