Senate Should Reject Perry to Lead Department He Vowed to Eliminate

WASHINGTON – The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources today holds a confirmation hearing on President-elect Trump’s nomination of former Texas Governor Rick Perry to become secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy.

The following is a statement by Rhea Suh, president of the Natural Resources Defense Council:

“Rick Perry should not be confirmed to head the Department of Energy. As a presidential candidate, he vowed to eliminate the agency—once he remembered its name.  This is a climate denier who refuses to accept the conclusions of science, but has been nominated to run a research agency that also controls our nuclear stockpile.  

“Dirty energy interests have given Perry more than $13 million in campaign contributions. And even as the state of Texas topped the nation in pollution-free wind energy—a sector with tens of thousands of jobs—Perry, as its Governor, repeatedly claimed that protecting the environment kills jobs.  The Senate should reject Perry to lead a department so vital to our economy and national security.”

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The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) is an international nonprofit environmental organization with more than 2 million members and online activists. Since 1970, our lawyers, scientists, and other environmental specialists have worked to protect the world's natural resources, public health, and the environment. NRDC has offices in New York City; Washington, D.C.; Los Angeles; San Francisco; Chicago; Bozeman, Montana; and Beijing. Visit us at www.nrdc.org and follow us on Twitter @NRDC.

 

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