Nick Cicale

Electric Power Attorney * Energy Bar Association* Backpacker Trailblazer * CT & VT home * NY & DC work * Yankees and Bills

[Jocko Willink @jockowillink]

Our forefathers put out some serious word.
Patrick Henry:

[@FERC @FERC]

⚠️Today @ 10 am ET - March Commission Meeting | Watch live from 🔗 https://t.co/YBtX287RxL

[Nick Cicale @NickJCicale]

@YankeesPR Piling on. Weak. See Dodgers.

[Nick Cicale @NickJCicale]

@Ken_Rosenthal @JonHeyman Dumb

[Nick Cicale @NickJCicale]

@agetzenberg Nonsense.

[Nick Cicale @NickJCicale]

@wiresgroup @GasteigerLarry @nationalgridus Congratulations Natasha and @nationalgridus!

[Nick Cicale @NickJCicale]

@CraigCaplan did the Senate vote on the FERC commissioner nominees?

[JD Vance @JDVance]

A while ago, probably in 2017, I appeared on Tucker Carlson's Fox show to talk about God knows what. Afterwards a name I barely knew sent me a DM on twitter and told me I did a great job. It was Charlie Kirk, and that moment of kindness began a friendship that lasted until today.

Charlie was fascinated by ideas and always willing to learn and change his mind. Like me, he was skeptical of Donald Trump in 2016. Like me, he came to see President Trump as the only figure capable of moving American politics away from the globalism that had dominated for our entire lives. When others were right, he learned from them. When he was right--as he usually was--he was generous. With Charlie, the attitude was never, "I told you so." But: "welcome."

Charlie was one of the first people I called when I thought about running for senate in early 2021. I was interested but skeptical there was a pathway. We talked through everything, from the strategy to the fundraising to the grassroots of the movement he knew so well. He introduced me to some of the people who would run my campaign and also to Donald Trump Jr. "Like his dad, he's misunderstood. He's extremely smart, and very much on our wavelength." Don took a call from me because Charlie asked him too.

Long before I ever committed (even in my mind) to running, Charlie had me speak to his donors at a TPUSA event. He walked me around the room and introduced me. He gave me honest feedback on my remarks. He had no reason to do this, no expectation that I'd go anywhere. I was polling, at that point, well below 5 percent. He did it because we were friends, and because he was a good man.

When I became the VP nominee--something Charlie advocated for both in public and private--Charlie was there for me. I was so glad to be part of the president's team, but candidly surprised by the effect it had on our family. Our kids, especially our oldest, struggled with the attention and the constant presence of the protective detail. I felt this acute sense of guilt, that I had conscripted my kids into this life without getting their permission. And Charlie was constantly calling and texting, checking on our family and offering guidance and prayers. Some of our most successful events were organized not by the campaign, but by TPUSA. He wasn't just a thinker, he was a doer, turning big ideas into bigger events with thousands of activists. And after every event, he would give me a big hug, tell me he was praying for me, and ask me what he could do. "You focus on Wisconsin," he'd tell me. "Arizona is in the bag." And it was.

Charlie genuinely believed in and loved Jesus Christ. He had a profound faith. We used to argue about Catholicism and Protestantism and who was right about minor doctrinal questions. Because he loved God, he wanted to understand him.

Someone else pointed out that Charlie died doing what he loved: discussing ideas. He would go into these hostile crowds and answer their questions. If it was a friendly crowd, and a progressive asked a question to jeers from the audience, he'd encourage his fans to calm down and let everyone speak. He exemplified a foundational virtue of our Republic: the willingness to speak openly and debate ideas.

Charlie had an uncanny ability to know when to push the envelope and when to be more conventional. I've seen people attack him for years for being wrong on this or that issue publicly, never realizing that privately he was working to broaden the scope of acceptable debate.

He was a great family man. I was talking to President Trump in the Oval Office today, and he said, "I know he was a very good friend of yours." I nodded silently, and President Trump observed that Charlie really loved his family. The president was right. Charlie was so proud of Erika and the two kids. He was so happy to be a father. And he felt such gratitude for having found a woman of God with whom he could build a family.

Charlie Kirk was a true friend. The kind of guy you could say something to and know it would always stay with him. I am on more than a few group chats with Charlie and people he introduced me to over the years. We celebrate weddings and babies, bust each other's chops, and mourn the loss of loved ones. We talk about politics and policy and sports and life. These group chats include people at the very highest level of our government. They trusted him, loved him, and knew he'd always have their backs. And because he was a true friend ,you could instinctively trust the people Charlie introduced you to. So much of the success we've had in this administration traces directly to Charlie's ability to organize and convene. He didn't just help us win in 2024, he helped us staff the entire government.

I was in a meeting in the West Wing when those group chats started lighting up with people telling Charlie they were praying for him. And that's how I learned the news that my friend had been shot. I prayed a lot over the next hour, as first good news and then bad trickled in.

God didn't answer those prayers, and that's OK. He had other plans. And now that Charlie is in heaven, I'll ask him to talk to big man directly on behalf of his family, his friends, and the country he loved so dearly.

You ran a good race, my friend.

We've got it from here.

[Nick Cicale @NickJCicale]

FERC Commissioner nominees testify at committee today.

[Craig Caplan @CraigCaplan]

Laura Swett and David LaCerte, President Trump's nominees to serve on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, testify at their Senate Energy & Natural Resources Cmte confirmation hearing today. If both are confirmed by the full Senate, FERC would have a 3-2 GOP majority.

[@FERC @FERC]

President Trump Names @RosnerFERC Chairman of FERC | https://t.co/gAB3De1AV0

[Nick Cicale @NickJCicale]

@JDVance Right on the money, Mr. Vice President. A hero to many boys who grew up in the 80s and 90s will be smiling down as we continue to do great things as Americans.

[@FERC @FERC]

Just Issued: FERC takes action to remove regulatory obstacles to speed up the construction of needed natural gas infrastructure projects in the United States. See details here https://t.co/CoB1ZMCrw1

[Nick Cicale @NickJCicale]

Please join the Northeast Chapter of the @EnergyBarAssoc at its marquee event of the year, its Annual Meeting, on June 17 and 18 in Boston at the law firm of DLA Piper LLP!!

https://t.co/zaBsrUWQtg

[Nick Cicale @NickJCicale]

@SenHarding30 A very happy Easter, Senator Harding!

[Nick Cicale @NickJCicale]

@JDVance Happy Easter to you and yours Mr. Vice President. Enjoy your time in the holy city.

[Nick Cicale @NickJCicale]

@AROD really enjoying your podcast, sir. Thank you for putting out inspiring content.

[Nick Cicale @NickJCicale]

@SecretaryWright Happy Monday, Mr. Secretary! Let's do it!

[Nick Cicale @NickJCicale]

Excellent article @FERChatterjee who speaks this afternoon about some of these very issues @EnergyBarAssoc Late Winter Summit! Don't miss it. Online registration for virtual attendees still available!

https://t.co/OfKFzzwcHn

[Neil Chatterjee @FERChatterjee]

Good read https://t.co/HXzyXyzWhq

[Nick Cicale @NickJCicale]

@CBSScottWhite You are not, Scott. As a Yankee fan,I have viewed it as a part of their uniform and a class standard upheld by the team. What's the next domino to fall? Names on the back of jerseys?

[Adam Schefter @AdamSchefter]

The Bills are trying to prevent the Chiefs from reaching the Super Bowl, where they’d be one win away from a 3-peat. The situation was reversed in the 1966 AFL Championship Game, when the Bills were going for a 3-peat, trying to win their third straight AFL title. On that day the Chiefs went into Buffalo and won 31-7, preventing the 3-peat and allowing the Chiefs to advance to Super Bowl I.