WATCH: Lummis Calls on Colleagues to Oppose Confirmation of Rep. Deb Haaland
Senator Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming recently spoke on the Senate Floor, voicing her opposition to President Biden’s nomination of Representative Deb Haaland as Secretary of the Interior.
Lummis joined fellow Senator, Steve Daines of Montana, asking to put a procedural hold on Rep. Haaland’s nomination, citing concerns about the “radical climate agenda the Congresswoman has vocally supported.”
While on the floor, Lummis had a lot to say to her contemporaries, especially when it came to issues that would impact her home state of Wyoming.
“Secretaries have an incredible amount of power to make decisions on how an Administration’s agenda gets implemented,” Cheney stated. “Based on her own public statements and actions, Deb Haaland is more radical in her positions than President Biden. None of these facts are particularly encouraging to folks in Wyoming and the west, who will be devastated by the policies that Congresswoman Haaland plans to champion.”
Lummis went on to describe the type of Secretary of Interior that she believes the country, and specifically Wyoming, actually needs.
“What we need is a secretary who understands the issues that westerners face. We need someone who knows the ways that states like Wyoming are contributing to America’s energy independence, and doing so in increasingly environmentally friendly ways. We need someone who recognizes that if we shut down production at home, we are only increasing the power of polluters like Russia and China abroad.”
While Lummis opposes the confirmation of Rep. Haaland, many of her Republican colleagues seem to disagree.
Republican Senators Lindsay Graham, Dan Sullivan, Lisa Murkowski, and Susan Collins have signaled that they may, in fact, vote for the advancement of Rep. Haaland to be the Secretary of the Interior Department.
During her confirmation hearing, Haaland emphasized that she would be implementing President Biden's agenda, and not her own. She stated that fossil fuels would still play a part in the country's energy system.
“There’s no question that fossil energy does and will continue to play a major role in America for years to come," Haaland said at the Senate hearing. "I know how important oil and gas revenues are to fund critical services,. But we must also recognize that the energy industry is innovating, and our climate challenge must be addressed."
To view Lummis' full comments, watch the video below: