President-elect Donald Trump on Saturday announced that he was nominating Chris Wright, who runs Denver-based oil and natural gas fracking company Liberty Energy, to lead the Energy Department.
Mr. Wright, a top Republican fundraiser, has no experience in Washington. He’s been a vocal proponent of fossil fuels and has questioned the existence of global warming and climate change.
Mr. Trump said that his pick to lead the Energy Department is a “leading technologist and entrepreneur in Energy,” who has worked in nuclear, solar, geothermal, and oil and gas, and was “one of the pioneers who helped launch the American Shale Revolution.”
“As Secretary of Energy, Chris will be a key leader, driving innovation, cutting red tape, and ushering in a new ‘Golden Age of American Prosperity and Global Peace,’” Mr. Trump said in a statement.
Mr. Wright will also be a member of a newly formed Council of Natural Energy, which will include all “Departments and Agencies involved in the permitting, production, generation, distribution, regulation, transportation, of ALL forms of American Energy.”
“This Council will oversee the path to U.S. ENERGY DOMINANCE by cutting red tape, enhancing private sector investments across all sectors of the Economy, and by focusing on INNOVATION over longstanding, but totally unnecessary, regulation,” Mr. Trump said.
• Alex Miller can be reached at amiller@washingtontimes.com.
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