Climate Change is Real, and So Is America’s Clean Energy Manufacturing Boom

Washington, D.C. — Donald Trump today named Chris Wright, the founder and CEO of a Big Oil company, as his nominee to head the Department of Energy. Wright, who gave $450,000 to Trump’s election, has said, “There is no climate crisis, and we’re not in the midst of an energy transition either.” In response to the announcement, Climate Power executive director Lori Lodes issued the following statement:

“No matter who they voted for, Americans are united in their desire for cleaner air and water and more affordable, accessible, clean energy options. Like his new boss, Donald Trump, Chris Wright denies the existence of climate change. Trump rewards people who think like him and do his bidding – even if it’s at odds with lower costs for working Americans and puts hundreds of thousands of good-paying clean energy jobs at risk. The truth is this is a dangerous nomination, and Republicans in the Senate need to protect working Americans – not tax breaks for oil CEOs”

Chris Wright’s Anti-Clean Energy Record: 

• Wright was handpicked by Harold Hamm, Trump’s most important Big Oil donor. 
• Wright and his wife donated more than $450,000 to Trump.
• Wright said that “there is no climate crisis” and claimed that “the energy transition is not happening.”
• Wright argued that the terms “climate crisis, energy transition, carbon pollution, clean energy, and dirty energy” were “deceptive and destructive,” “nonsense terms” that were “made up by alarmists”
• Wright has repeatedly argued climate change isn’t making extreme weather worse.