DOE secretary lied to Congress, House Dems allege
DeLauro and Kaptur talk during last week's hearing. Photo: Pete Kiehart / Bloomberg via Getty Images
House Democratic appropriators accused Energy Secretary Chris Wright of "outright lying" to Congress during his agency's budget hearing last week.
Why it matters: Lying to Congress — even in this politically charged climate — is a serious accusation.
Zoom in: A fact sheet from Reps. Marcy Kaptur, the party's top energy/water appropriator, and Rosa DeLauro, the committee's ranking member, argues that Wright made false statements while defending the agency's reorganization in his first Hill appearance as secretary.
- Wright told lawmakers the DOE hadn't frozen any funding, had no unpaid invoices, hadn't canceled any projects, and had seen only a reduction of "less than a thousand" staffers.
- Kaptur and DeLauro cited verified documents, statements from companies and organizations, and news reporting to allege that all those statements were false.
- A Jan. 20 secretarial order froze all funding, and Wright acknowledged during the hearing the DOE was reviewing awards to ensure they align with President Trump's agenda, they pointed out.
What they're saying: Wright "spent hours at the hearing making incorrect and misleading statements or outright lying. This cannot go unchecked," the Democrats wrote in a statement.
- "It is impossible for Congress to responsibly conduct oversight of an agency when presented with false information," they wrote.
The other side: "The Department of Energy stands by Secretary Wright's testimony and looks forward to working with the members of the House of Representatives to restore American energy dominance," an agency spokesperson said in a statement.
Editor's note: This story has been updated with a response from the Energy Department.
