Energy dominance can check Russia and Iran, Burgum to tell senators
Burgum in September. Photo: Bryan Dozier/Variety via Getty Images
Interior Secretary nominee Doug Burgum will make a foreign policy pitch for expanded U.S. production when he appears Thursday before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.
Why it matters: If confirmed, the former North Dakota governor will oversee oil and gas leasing decisions on vast swaths of federal lands and waters.
- He's also slated to run a new National Energy Council with a portfolio extending beyond Interior's role.
Driving the news: "When energy production is restricted in America, it doesn't reduce demand, it just shifts production to countries like Russia, Venezuela, and Iran — whose autocratic leaders don't care about the environment," Burgum's prepared testimony states, arguing that U.S. output is cleaner.
- His testimony says President-elect Trump's "energy dominance" vision will "end wars abroad and make life more affordable for every family by driving down inflation."
The other side: The case against Trump's plans — which would also jettison Biden's climate policies — is that they're bad for the planet and U.S. ability to compete in emerging clean tech sectors.
- Environmentalists have noted that North Dakota is a leader in wind energy generation — a form of energy about which Trump regularly complains.
- They have encouraged senators to ask Burgum about that issue as well as about oil and gas leasing in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
What we're watching: Whether the hearing gets into specific policy plans or the structure of the new energy council, which remains vague.
