Obama Interior, Agriculture Appointees Complete Anti-Energy Team
Statement on Vilsack, Salazar Appointments
Washington, D.C., December 17, 2008—President-elect Obama today announced two cabinet-level appointments for the departments of Interior and Agriculture, respectively. Both nominees have a record of supporting policies that would make energy less affordable.
Statement by Myron Ebell, Director of Energy and Global Warming Policy for the Competitive Enterprise Institute:
"President-elect Barack Obama’s nominations of Senator Ken Salazar to be Secretary of the Interior and of former Governor Tom Vilsack to be Secretary of Agriculture complete a team that opposes affordable energy. As Governor of Iowa, Mr. Vilsack was a leading promoter of the ethanol boondoggle. Colorado Senator Salazar says he is for more oil production on federal land, but has tried to stop one oil and gas project after another on federal land in Colorado."
Senator Salazar and Governor Vilsack will join Dr. Steven Chu, who has been nominated to be Secretary of Energy, and Carol M. Browner, who has been appointed White House energy and global warming “czar.” Ms. Browner is a close ally of former Vice President Al Gore, who advocates closing down all coal-fired power plants and banning new ones, even though coal provides half of America’s electricity. Dr. Chu has declared that coal is “his worst nightmare” and supports European levels of gasoline taxes of four or more dollars a gallon.
If President Obama allows his energy team to pursue their goals, American taxpayers will be required to pay tens of billions of dollars to special interests such as ethanol producers and windmill owners and American consumers will see huge increases in electricity and gasoline prices.
For more on energy policy, visit www.globalwarming.org.