Hannity’s Nevada “Town Hall” Puts Big Oil Lies on Primetime

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Tonight, Sean Hannity hosted a town hall with Adam Laxalt and other hardline conservatives to amplify some of Big Oil’s biggest lies ahead of the midterm elections. Laxalt has been notoriously afraid of the media during his campaign, shying away from real journalists who will push him on the issues. When he joined Big Oil cheerleader Sean Hannity, he was given a platform for an hour-long rant riddled with disinformation and name-calling, denying Nevadans  an opportunity to finally learn more about where Laxalt stands on key issues.

This spectacle comes as Nevadans face record-high energy prices driven by corporate greed and price gouging, as well as the increasingly costly and devastating impacts of the climate crisis. Yet, Laxalt did not offer any meaningful solutions to cut costs for working people, create new jobs in booming industries, or protect against the changing climate. Instead, Laxalt and Hannity spent an hour spreading fear and lies in hopes of tricking Nevada into voting for out-of-touch candidates who care more about aiding and abetting wealthy Big Oil executives and their shareholders than ordinary people.

Here are some key moments from the town hall:

• Laxalt was quick to talk about high gas prices, but failed to mention that corporate greed is driving high gas prices. Fossil fuel executives and their wealthy shareholders are raking in record profits as Nevadans pay the price. Big Oil has made more than $210 billion just in the first six months of 2022 and another quarter of sky-high profits are expected starting next week.
  • And Big Oil is pouring those ill-gotten profits into key elections, backing Republicans who will fight for their interests, enabling them to continue price-gouging consumers and blocking overwhelmingly popular investments in clean energy and climate.
  • Laxalt has taken roughly $234,000 from the oil and gas industry for his Senate campaign. 
• While Laxalt repeatedly brought up Latino voters, he didn’t offer any policy solutions to benefit these communities. His view is fundamentally out of step with Latino voters in Nevada, a vast majority (80%) of which blame the oil and gas industry for higher energy costs. Sixty-eight percent of Latino voters in Nevada also say that expanding clean energy production in America will have a positive impact on our economy, a measure opposed by Laxalt. 
• Laxalt desperately tried to paint Senator Catherine Cortez Masto as an extremist that is out of step with Nevada voters. The fact is that Sen. Cortez Masto was democratically elected by voters and she has delivered on the promises she made on the campaign trail.
  • Most recently, Sen. Cortez Masto voted for the Inflation Reduction Act, which  invests an estimated $2.7 billion in large-scale clean power generation and storage in Nevada between now and 2030. This historic law also provides tax credits that will create good-paying jobs across solar, wind, storage, and other clean energy industries, turbocharging one of the fastest-growing industries in Nevada.
  • Laxalt on the other hand opposes this historic cost-saving and job-creating law. 

This so-called town hall left voters without answers to critical questions with only two weeks until Election Day. Laxalt owes it to voters to answer the following questions related to climate action, lowering gas prices, and creating good-paying jobs in the already-booming clean energy industry.

1. Can you explain your opposition to the Inflation Reduction Act, which experts say will create millions of clean energy jobs over the next decade,save the average Nevada homeowner more than 16% on their utility bills and invest  $2.7 billion in large-scale clean energy and storage?
2. Nevada will lose 8% of its Colorado Water river allocation under new drought restrictions in 2023. The basin is facing significant shortages thanks to persistent megadrought conditions. How would you assist Nevadans, particularly those whose livelihoods depend on water access, contending with rising temperatures, severe drought, and mandatory water cuts? 
3. Clean energy industries are projected to see significant growth over the coming decade. How would you work to bring clean energy jobs to Nevada and ensure Nevadans are well-positioned to compete for these new jobs? 
4. Nevadans are facing rising home energy costs, with an average low-income family in the state spending 6-8% of their income on energy bills. What efforts do you support to help lower these costs for Nevada families?
5. As Nevadans face sky-high prices at the pump, with gas in the Las Vegas metro reaching more than $5.50 a gallon, oil and gas companies are raking in record profits. You’ve accepted more than $200k in campaign contributions from Big Oil and Gas for your race. Earlier this year, the U.S. House passed legislation prohibiting oil and gas companies from profiteering at the pump. If elected, would you be willing to stand up to the powerful oil and gas lobby and support similar legislation in the Senate? 
6. From rising temperatures to toxic air pollution – marginalized communities across Nevada bear the brunt of the climate crisis and environmental injustice. Do you support legislation like the Environmental Justice for All Act that addresses the disproportionate effects of federal laws and programs on communities of color, low-income communities, and tribal and Indigenous communities?