December 14, 2016

Wyden Statement on President-elect’s Nominee for Secretary of Energy

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today released the following statement on President-elect Donald Trump’s decision to nominate Texas Gov. Rick Perry to lead the U.S. Department of Energy:

“Gov. Rick Perry campaigned on a promise to eliminate the department he is now being nominated to run. I will be asking Gov. Perry how he plans to continue fulfilling the Energy Department’s crucial role in creating good-paying energy jobs – which include clean, renewable energy jobs – and how he will continue to pursue all types of energy production and development.

“The person at the helm of the U.S. Department of Energy cannot simply shill for Big Oil and ignore the fact that part of protecting our country means facing head-on the very real challenge of climate change by working toward a low-carbon economy.

“I will also be asking him about how he plans to address the dangerous and decades-long challenge of cleaning up toxic nuclear waste at the Hanford Reservation Site in Washington State, while meeting the department’s obligations to protect its workers and the citizens of the Pacific Northwest. Given that more than half of the Energy Department’s budget is devoted to our nuclear arsenal and cleanup, it’s important that the Secretary of Energy understands this highly technical area that is so vital to Americans’ security.”

Wyden is the former chair of and a senior Democrat on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, where the Energy Secretary nomination hearing will be held.

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