The New York Times’ Climate newsletter’s take on Trump’s Climate-Crisis-Denying Cabinet Nominees
What to know about Trump’s cabinet hearings
| Lee Zeldin, the E.PA. pick, is short on environmental experience: Former New York congressman Lee Zeldin, president-elect Donald J. Trump’s choice to run the Environmental Protection Agency, told senators on Tuesday that he would “enthusiastically uphold” the agency’s mission to protect human health and the environment and that he grasped the basic science of climate change. But in a back-and-forth with Senator Edward J. Markey, Democrat of Massachusetts, Zeldin would not commit to aggressively regulating greenhouse gases from smokestacks and tailpipes in the way that the agency under President Biden had. Carbon emissions from transportation and power plants are chief drivers of global warming. — Coral Davenport Doug Burgum, tapped to lead the Interior Department, aims for ‘energy dominance’: Burgum assured lawmakers on Thursday that he was an “avid outdoorsman” who cared about conservation, even as he declared that any curbs on energy production pose a national security threat to the United States. Burgum served two terms as governor of North Dakota before stepping down in December. If confirmed to lead the Interior Department, he is expected to play a key role in implementing Trump’s “drill, baby, drill” agenda, which includes making it easier for energy companies to exploit natural resources, build new oil and gas pipelines and export terminals and end the development of wind energy, which competes with fossil fuels — Lisa Friedman Chris Wright, the Energy Department pick, is quizzed on climate and clean energy: Wright tried to reassure Democrats at his confirmation hearing on Wednesday that he believed climate change was a “global challenge that we need to solve” and that he would support the development of all forms of energy, including wind and solar power. The founder and chief executive of Liberty Energy, a fracking firm, Wright has been a longtime evangelist for fossil fuels like oil and gas. He has frequently shrugged off the risks of global warming, saying in 2023, once saying, “There is no climate crisis, and we’re not in the midst of an energy transition, either.” He has also criticized renewable energy sources like wind and solar power, calling them “unreliable and costly.” Brad Plumer Thanks to the NYT and Coral Davenport, Lisa Friedman and Brad Plumer for these synopses. Canadians interested in subscribing to the NYT and obtaining the weekly climate newsletter (of which this represented 25% or less this week) can do so for about $13.50 CAD / month, allowing access to all news content and newsletters |
