Trump's Energy pick pressed on climate change in Senate confirmation hearing

Driving the news: In his opening statement, Wright outlined three goals in front of the Energy and Natural Resource Committee if confirmed as energy secretary.

• He emphasized the importance of domestic energy production and the need to "lead the world in innovation and technology." And he called the resiliency of the nation's electrical grid "the most urgent energy issue today."
• In addition, he acknowledged that the combustion of hydrocarbons is contributing to climate change.

The intrigue: Colorado's U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper, a Democrat on the committee, introduced Wright, a Denver native and longtime acquaintance.

• Hickenlooper called him a "scientist who is open to discussion," praising Wright's care for energy poverty issues and backing of a variety of energy technologies.
• Spokespeople for Hickenlooper and fellow Democrat U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet, said they have not decided how they will vote on Wright's confirmation.

The big picture: Democrats, who consider it an existential threat, sharply criticized Wright on climate change while Republicans touted his support for nuclear energy and the oil and gas industry.

Zoom in: The tensest moment came when U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla (D-California) pressed Wright on his prior comments about wildfires and climate change in the shadow of the deadly fires in southern California.

• Padilla quoted a prior Wright social media post saying: "the hype over wildfires is just hype to justify more improvement from bad government policies."

Wright said he stood by his comments but expressed sorrow about the devastation left by the Los Angeles area fires.

• "Tell that to the families of the more than two dozen lost in these fires and counting," Padilla said in return.

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Editor's note: This story has been corrected to remove a reference to Sen. Hickenlooper announcing his support for the nominee, Wright. (He made no such announcement.) It has also been corrected to reflect that Sen. Alex Padilla said more than two dozen people (not a dozen) died in the California fires.