[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 22 (Monday, February 3, 2025)]
[Senate]
[Pages S534-S535]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
NOMINATION OF CHRISTOPHER WRIGHT
Mr. LEE. Madam President, you don't need to be an economist to know
that something went terribly wrong over the last 4 years. Just ask any
family paying their utility bills and buying appliances or filling up
their cars with gas at the pump. Prices skyrocketed, and wages haven't
kept pace--not even close. When Americans opened their energy bills,
they didn't see climate plans; they saw costs piling up and questions
they couldn't answer: Why is this so expensive? Why is Washington
making it so much worse?
With America's abundant resources of oil, gas, nuclear, geothermal,
hydropower, et cetera, Biden's Secretary of Energy could have
spearheaded an era of energy dominance and energy abundance. Instead,
the opposite happened. Secretary Granholm used her position to funnel
taxpayer dollars to her friends in Michigan, while the rest of the
country struggled under soaring energy prices and mounting inflation.
Under Secretary Granholm, the Department of Energy was reduced to a
taxpayer-funded piggy bank for political allies and for her pet
projects.
[[Page S535]]
Rather than unleashing American energy, the DOE green-lit almost $23
billion in last-minute loan guarantees, with nearly 70 percent flowing
to Granholm's home State of Michigan. Talk about suspicious math.
The Department of Energy is a powerhouse that can help make or break
our economy, our national security, and our ability to lead on the
world stage. Yet, under the Biden administration, the DOE mismanaged
Federal loan programs, rubberstamped regulations that raised consumer
prices, and did very little to support the development of critical
infrastructure that we need. The former administration's so-called
clean energy policies became a subsidy machine for well-connected
corporations--companies that pocketed billions while everyday Americans
paid more for gas, electricity, appliances, and groceries.
The Biden administration drained the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to
its lowest level in decades. This was an unfortunate move. They
weaponized environmental regulations to block the development of
critical pipelines, making it nearly impossible to transport energy
across the country, and they made us more reliant on foreign energy
resources, putting American security in the hands of OPEC and other
adversarial nations.
That is all about to change. It is all about to change under soon-to-
be Secretary Chris Wright.
Chris Wright understands that affordable, abundant energy is
imperative to our national security. It is what allows families to heat
their homes in the winter without going broke. It is what enables
businesses to grow, hire, and compete globally; and it is what keeps
America secure, independent, and free from the whims of foreign
suppliers.
At his confirmation hearing, Mr. Wright commented on a lot of this
and made commitments to rein in waste, fraud, and abuse, especially at
the Loan Programs Office, which Granholm used to dole out loan
commitments at a pace exponentially faster than what we have seen in
years past. This kind of reckless spending didn't lead to breakthroughs
in efficiency or cost savings for consumers. No. Instead, it drove up
the national debt and lined the pockets of the well-connected.
Chris Wright won't treat the Department of Energy as a slush fund of
sorts for political favors. No, his vision is simple: Get the DOE back
on track--back to work on prioritizing energy abundance, technological
innovation, and exports that strengthen our position on the global
stage rather than weaken it.
Mr. Wright also promised to review the DOE's Appliance and Equipment
Standards Program, which has become another example of how the previous
administration drove up costs, all under the guise of energy savings.
As nearly every American can attest, these regulations on common
household appliances like dishwashers, dryers, and stoves--just to name
a few--haven't made appliances work better or last longer; they have
mostly made things more expensive and work not nearly as well. It is
important to remember the extent to which they really have made things
more expensive. Chris Wright understands that innovation doesn't come
from forcing inferior products on consumers. It comes from creating an
environment where better technologies can thrive.
It is telling that even my colleagues across the aisle recognized Mr.
Wright's competence by giving him really strong bipartisan support out
of committee. Chris Wright deserves that same bipartisan support on the
floor today. He deserves it because we all understand that continuing
down this path--our current path, the path we have been on for the last
4 years, this path of reckless spending and ideological crusades--is
unsustainable. Chris Wright, of course, must do more than reverse the
damage. He must rebuild trust with the American people and secure our
place as the dominant global energy leader.
We have a new path ahead. Mr. Wright offers us a path where the
Department of Energy serves the American people, not special interests;
a future where entrepreneurs, not bureaucrats, are the ones who drive
innovation; a future where energy abundance lowers costs, grows our
economy, and protects our national security. We can continue down the
path of inflated prices, foreign dependence, and mismanaged resources,
or we can choose a better path. We can make a clean break. We can
choose leadership prioritizing the American worker, the American
family, the American consumer, and the American future.
The failures of the past don't have to define our future. We find
ourselves in the position where we can look at this and chart a
course--a course directed at what can be unburdened by what has been.
With Chris Wright leading the way at DOE, we can unleash American
energy and ensure prosperity for generations to come. It is time for us
to confirm Chris Wright as Secretary of Energy.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader.
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