Lawmakers questioned President-elect Trump’s vitality secretary on climate change, the Los Angeles wildfires, and the Biden administration’s inexperienced vitality agenda throughout his nomination listening to, which noticed disruptions from a number of local weather protesters.
The Senate Vitality and Pure Assets Committee held a affirmation listening to for Chris Wright, Liberty Vitality Inc. CEO and Trump’s decide to move the Energy Department, on Wednesday, which was additionally his birthday.
The Trump nominee was launched by a Democratic senator, Sen. John Hickenlooper of Colorado, who described him as having “an unrestrained fanatic for fossil fuels.” Wright centered his responses on vitality dominance, saying that local weather change is a “actual situation,” international vitality demand, and his give attention to rising vitality sources.
“America has an historic alternative to safe our vitality programs, ship management in scientific and technological innovation, steward our weapons stockpiles and meet Chilly Conflict legacy waste commitments,” Wright mentioned in his opening assertion.
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Chris Wright, chief govt officer of Liberty Vitality Inc. and US vitality secretary nominee for US President-elect Donald Trump, throughout a Senate Vitality and Pure Assets Committee affirmation listening to in Washington, DC, US, on Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2025. (Al Drago)
Wright mentioned that he has recognized three “rapid duties” the place he’ll focus his consideration, if nominated: unleashing American vitality, main the world in innovation and expertise breakthroughs and growing manufacturing in America.
“President Trump shares my ardour for vitality, and if confirmed, I’ll work tirelessly to implement his daring agenda as an unabashed steward for all sources of inexpensive, dependable and safe American vitality,” Wright informed the committee.
Republicans, similar to Sen. Steve Daines of Montana, positioned their questioning on Biden administration insurance policies, similar to a ban on liquefied pure gasoline (LNG) exports, regulations on household appliances, and most just lately blocking drilling alongside the coast.
A number of Democratic senators claimed committee chairman Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, scheduled the affirmation listening to earlier than all required paperwork on Wright was supplied to the members of the committee. Different Democrats used their time on the mic to assert the Los Angeles fires had been caused by “climate change.”
President-elect Donald Trump throughout a marketing campaign rally on the PPG Paints Enviornment on November 04, 2024 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Chip Somodevilla)
“Regardless of the misinformation that is circulating right here within the Capitol, into California, and in all places in between, it is clear that these fires solely attain the dimensions and the size that they’ve due to unseasonably dry vegetation and very excessive winds, each of that are a direct results of local weather change,” Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., mentioned through the listening to.
Requested concerning the situation of local weather change, Wright mentioned he believes it is a “actual situation”
“I’ve studied and adopted the information and the evolution of local weather change for not less than 20 years now. It’s a international situation. It’s a actual situation. It is a difficult situation,” Wright mentioned, including that he believes the answer to local weather change “is to evolve our vitality system.”
Fox Information Digital captured footage of a number of local weather change protesters who disrupted Wright’s listening to on Wednesday.
A protester holds up a “Large Oil Earnings LA Burns” banner as Secretary of Vitality nominee Chris Wright testifies throughout his affirmation listening to within the Senate Vitality and Pure Assets Committee on Wednesday, January 15, 2025. (Invoice Clark)
One protester stood up whereas Wright was being questioned and requested if his insurance policies would “put out the fires in LA.”
“Are you gonna ask any questions or simply softball on the local weather this complete time,” mentioned one other protester who was faraway from the listening to room.
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A number of different local weather protesters had been additionally stationed outdoors the listening to room, with shirts that learn, “I will not let my future burn.”
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