news

ALBANY – Congressman Paul Tonko (NY-20) released the following statement in response to news that President-elect Donald J. Trump plans to nominate former Texas Governor Rick Perry as his first Energy Secretary.

“Today, Mr. Trump nominated Governor Perry, a man who stated he wants to abolish the Department of Energy, to head the very same agency. While I am hopeful to work with any cabinet nomination the President-elect makes, I am worried that this choice will set our nation and our national security back decades in what should be our shared goal to become energy independent, move away from fossil fuels, and invest in renewables and the clean energy job market.

“With the Department of Energy moving from Secretary Ernest Moniz, a nuclear physicist who negotiated the historic deal that de-weaponized Iran, to Governor Perry, who had trouble naming the very department he is likely to manage, I'm concerned our national energy policy has four years of ‘oops moments’ ahead of us,” said Tonko.

# # #