Trump’s plan to bury the government’s grim climate assessment by releasing it on Black Friday may have failed, but his plan to place a climate denier on the five-member panel at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission appears likely to succeed.
Tomorrow, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources committee will vote on Bernard McNamee’s confirmation. He currently serves as head of the policy office at the Department of Energy, a position he took in May after a four-month stint at the right-wing Texas Public Policy Foundation. I wrote about TPPF’s connection to the Koch Brothers and ALEC in a post published just before McNamee’s confirmation hearing. Last week, Utility Dive published a piece that included a two-minute excerpt of a video of McNamee’s February speech on Life:Powered, the TPPF initiative he directed. Here’s the full video.
Says McNamee in the video, “What this is really about is changing the hearts and minds of the American people about what they think about energy and to start believing in it again, understanding that fossil fuels are not something dirty, something you have to move and get away from, but understand that they are the key, not only to our prosperity, but to the quality of life, but also towards the environment.” He continues, "The green movement is always talking about more government control because it's the constant battle between liberty and tryanny. It's about people who want to say, 'I know what's better for you.'"
Although McNamee was grilled by some members of the committee during his confirmation hearing, Bernie Sanders, one of the most vocal proponents for climate action in the Senate, wasn’t present. “Democrat” Joe Manchin was there, though. Regarding McNamee’s willingness to push the Trump administration’s proposed coal and nuclear bailouts, Manchin told McNamee, "I'm probably one of the only ones on my side who appreciates where you're coming from. I appreciate your position."
Lisa Murkowski’s scheduling of the committee vote for tomorrow comes as no surprise. She’s eager to see McNamee confirmed before the end of the year. In October, the GOP vowed to move “at light speed” to get him confirmed.
A network of environmental and climate advocates will deliver petitions to members of the committee tomorrow morning prior to the vote. The petition will be delivered to the full Senate should McNamee’s nomination advance. Add your name to send a message to the Senate that the last thing we need at the nation’s regulatory agency is a climate denier.