Sen. Hirono: “If you are confirmed, your obligation will be to the American people, not to the shareholders or board members for an oil or gas company.”
~ Video of Sen. Hirono’s question line can be found here ~
WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), a member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, pressed Chris Wright, President-elect Trump’s nominee to be Secretary of Energy, on his potential conflicts of interest and his commitment to engage in vigorous oversight of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)’s project funding at Wright’s confirmation hearing. As Secretary of Energy, Mr. Wright—a multi-millionaire currently serving as CEO of Liberty Energy, the second largest oil and gas hydraulic fracturing company in the U.S.—would be responsible for overseeing the country’s nuclear infrastructure and implementing the department’s energy policies.
Senator Hirono began with two questions related to sexual misconduct, which she has asked every nominee since 2018. After discussing the devastation caused by the recent Los Angeles wildfires, as well as the Maui wildfires in 2023, Senator Hirono asked Mr. Wright about the need for improvements to Maui’s electrical grid in order to reduce the risks of wildfires and ensure reliable access to power for residents.
“As we see these kinds of natural disasters, I think states and municipalities will need help from the DOE,” said Senator Hirono.
In 2023, Hawaiian Electric received a $95 million award through the Biden-Harris administration’s Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) to help rebuild Maui’s electrical grid. Senator Hirono pressed Mr. Wright on his commitment to continue allocating funding for grid improvements with the new incoming administration. The IIJA also requires that all construction and repair projects funded by the DOE pay prevailing wages, effectively creating hundreds of thousands of clean energy jobs. Senator Hirono asked Mr. Wright to commit to upholding those labor standards and paying workers a fair wage.
Senator Hirono then questioned Mr. Wright about a dinner hosted by President-elect Trump at Mar-a-Lago in April 2024.
“The Washington Post reported in April 2024 that Donald Trump told a group of about 24 oil executives at Mar-a-Lago that they should raise $1 billion for his campaign, which would be a ‘deal,’ given his commitment to reversing environmental regulations, expanding oil and gas leasing on federal land, and approval of natural gas exports,” said Senator Hirono.
When pressed by Senator Hirono about whether he thought it was appropriate for President-elect Trump to offer such a deal, Mr. Wright denied that any such offer was made. However, following the April 2024 dinner, Mr. Wright donated more than $273,000 and his wife co-hosted a fundraiser for Trump to help him win re-election.
Senator Hirono then asked Mr. Wright to reaffirm his commitment to engage in vigorous oversight of the DOE’s funding programs as Secretary of Energy, even if President-elect Trump pressures him to give preference to one of Trump’s favored businesses. She also pressed Mr. Wright about whether he would allow exports of natural gas, even at the expense of rising utility bills for Americans.
“If you are confirmed, your obligation will be to the American people, not to the shareholders or board members for an oil or gas company,” said Senator Hirono.
The full transcript of Senator Hirono’s exchange with Mr. Wright is available below. Video of Senator Hirono’s question line can be found here.
Sen. Hirono: Before I get to my questions I just want to note that we did not receive information relating to this nominee until really late yesterday and it would have been good if we could have followed the process that would have given us more time, which meant that this hearing would not be happening today.
So, for the nominee, as part of my responsibilities as a member of this as well as all my other committees, I ask the following two initial questions to ascertain the fitness of the nominee for the job. So I ask you, since you became a legal adult, have you ever made unwanted requests for sexual favors or committed any verbal or physical harassment or assault of a sexual nature?
Mr. Wright: I have not.
Sen. Hirono: Have you ever faced discipline or entered into a settlement relating to this kind of conduct?
Mr. Wright: I have not.
Sen. Hirono: It is shocking to see the devastation that is caused by the wildfires in Los Angeles, and of course we are seeing that it’s shocking. In 2023, a wildfire killed 102 people and destroyed the town of Lahaina on Maui and Hawaiian Electric, which is our major utility company, received a $95 million award from the DOE to help in rebuilding Maui’s electric grid and reduce the risk of future wildfires.
The state of Hawaii has also received other support and funding from the DOE to proceed with this kind of modernization. Do you acknowledge the need for improvements to our electric grids that will reduce the risk of wildfires and ensure reliable access to power?
Mr. Wright: Senator, thank you for your question and boy, I remember watching with horror the fires in Lahaina and the fires today in L.A., it is absolute human tragedy. It is devastating. But to answer your question, absolutely, yes we need to improve our electric grid both for increased supply, for increased resilience to natural disasters and events.
Sen. Hirono: So as we see these kinds of natural disasters, I think states and municipalities will need help from the DOE, so will you continue allocating funding for grid improvements as authorized by Congress? Yes or no?
Mr. Wright: Well, I am not quite sure it is as simple as that. But I think that my short answer would be yes, of course I want to work with you and other states to increase grid resilience.
Sen. Hirono: I appreciate that.
The DOE is required to ensure that all construction and repair projects funded by the DOE under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act pay prevailing wages. Will you pay prevailing wages as required under the infrastructure law that I just mentioned?
Mr. Wright: Senator, if I have the privilege to be confirmed I will follow the laws and statutes of the United States.
Sen. Hirono: And that would mean paying prevailing wages on these kinds of projects.
The Washington Post reported that in April 2024, Donald Trump told a group of about 24 oil executives at Mar-a-Lago that they should raise $1 billion for his campaign, which would be a ‘deal,’ given his commitment to reversing environmental regulations, expanding oil and gas leasing on federal land, and approval of natural gas exports. Did you attend that meeting at Mar-a-Lago?
Mr. Wright: I was at a dinner with President Trump in Mar-a-Lago in April—quite a bit different than what you just described, but yes I was at a dinner.
Sen. Hirono: Well, it was reported he talked about a $1 billion—do you think that it was appropriate for the President to even put forth the possibility of such a deal?
Mr. Wright: I was at the dinner and the President put forward no such deal.
Sen. Hirono: That is not what was reported.
As Secretary of Energy you will have oversight over a lot of contracts, grants, and loan guarantees. Are you prepared to engage in vigorous oversight of DOE funding, even if President Trump pressures you to approve ‘sweetheart deals’ to one of his favorite businesses? Will you be objective, should you be confirmed?
Mr. Wright: I have followed rigorous and ethical business practices my whole life, senator, and will continue to do exactly that at the Department of Energy if I have the privilege of being confirmed.
Sen. Hirono: I only have a little bit of time, but I do want to get to this—if you are confirmed, your obligation will be to the American people, not to the shareholders or board members for an oil or gas company. Would you allow all exports of natural gas to China and anywhere else around the world, regardless of whether the exports would increase heating and power bills for the American people?
Mr. Wright: Senator, I would love to have more time to talk about natural gas exports. The brief history of them is as we have grown our natural gas exports, our price of natural gas has gone down because the industry—the natural gas production industry—has benefited from scale.
Sen. Hirono: So you’re telling me that you would? I’m asking whether you would take into consideration what the impact for the cost of energy in America would be if you allow export of these oil and gas. So you would keep that uppermost in mind right? What the impact of these kinds of exports would be to the cost of energy to our American people?
Mr. Wright: Absolutely, senator, I share your concern there.
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