This mindset is critical to winning support from members of Congress who represent districts and states that are heavily dependent on the fossil fuels industry

This is an uphill battle that I don't know the representatives from those districts can ever really climb, but focusing on this economic support aspect needs to be embraced by those outside of those districts as a way to try to slowly win more and more support from the general population. Maybe successful implementation of the job retraining and economic revitalization of certain areas can serve as an example and roadmap for other areas moving forward in a way that will kick off the needed momentum

Fossil fuel workers are people too!  Their mechanical, electrical, marine and management skills, as well as the infrastructure and financial resources of their employers, will be crucial to the energy transition. The increased minimum wage will be a cushion to prevent inequities when hiring large numbers of workers in the transition.  It is happening already in Texas, New Mexico, North and South Dakota. 

Does the Solar Tribune really seek a "just transition" for employees of fossil fuel plants, or to pad the bank accounts of solar and gas developers?

Maybe we should be seeking a transition to a field that shows promise for actually replacing those fossil fuel plants instead of guaranteeing their permanence (and even building new ones).