Oct 8, 2019

How Rick Perry's tenure measures up to past Energy Department secretaries

Ben Geman
Data: Department of Energy; Chart: Axios Visuals

Energy Secretary Rick Perry told reporters in Lithuania Monday that his departure from DOE isn't imminent.

The big picture: If Perry does indeed leave soon, the length of his tenure would fall squarely in the middle of his predecessors.

  • "They’ve been writing the story for at least nine months now. One of these days they will probably get it right, but it’s not today, it’s not tomorrow, it’s not next month," Perry said, per Reuters.

Worth noting: "Not next month" doesn't exactly knock down recent reports that he's planning to step down this year.

Go deeper: Trump pins Ukraine call on Energy Secretary Rick Perry

Go deeper

Zachary Basu

Energy Secretary Rick Perry offers Trump his resignation

Photo: Matthew Eisman/Getty Images

Energy Secretary Rick Perry informed President Trump on Thursday that he is resigning, Bloomberg first reported and Trump later confirmed. Perry's exact departure date is unknown, but Trump told reporters it would be "at the end of the year" and that he has already picked a successor.

Why it matters: While Perry has largely avoided the kind of controversies that have plagued Trump Cabinet officials like Scott Pruitt and Ryan Zinke, he has recently found himself embroiled in the Ukraine scandal currently at the heart of the House's impeachment inquiry. Perry told the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday that he was directed by President Trump to seek out Rudy Giuliani to discuss the president's concerns about alleged Ukrainian corruption.

Go deeperArrowOct 17, 2019
Marisa Fernandez

Trump picks Dan Brouillette for Energy Secretary

U.S. Deputy Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette. Photo: Odd Andersen/AFP/Getty Images

President Trump intends to nominate Deputy Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette to replace outgoing Energy Secretary Rick Perry, who turned in a resignation letter amid his connection to the Ukraine debacle.

The state of play: Perry plans on leaving his post by the end of the year, according to the president's tweet on Friday. Brouillette has a lower profile than Perry but supports the same basic agenda, including nuclear power and exports of liquefied natural gas, per Axios' Amy Harder.

Go deeperArrowOct 18, 2019
Orion Rummler

Rick Perry will not cooperate with impeachment inquiry "at this time"

Rick Perry at the White House on June 12, 2019. Photo: Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images

The Department of Energy cited the same arguments as the Pentagon for why it is unable to cooperate "at this time" with House committees' subpoena for documents related to President Trump's efforts to push Ukraine to investigate Joe Biden.

The big picture: As Axios first reported, President Trump told House Republicans that he made his now infamous phone call to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky — described in the whistleblower report at the center of an ongoing impeachment inquiry — at the urging of Energy Secretary Rick Perry, who informed Trump that he is resigning on Thursday.

Go deeperArrowOct 19, 2019