WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Ranking Member of the Senate Environment and Public Works (EPW) Committee, today joined her colleagues in an effort to expose the hypocrisy of government officials who are targeting fossil fuels while themselves relying on fossil fuel-powered transportation.
Senator Capito and her colleagues introduced the Executive Branch Emissions Transparency Act to create a publicly accessible database documenting the carbon emissions associated with all fossil fuel-powered travel by the president, vice president, and executive branch political appointees.
“Actions speak louder than words,” Senator Capito said. “When you have coastal elites waging war on fossil fuels and at the same time traveling around the globe in private jets, it rings hollow. While the administration seems intent on eliminating energy jobs in West Virginia and across the country, we’ll continue to push for transparency so the American people know when those in power say one thing about fossil fuel-powered travel, and then do the opposite.”
President Biden has issued a record-breaking number of executive orders in his first few days in office, many of which specifically target fossil fuels. He has revoked the permit for the Keystone XL pipeline and halted the sale of oil and gas leases on federal lands, which have had a devastating impact on workers and killed thousands of jobs. At the same time, his administration officials continue to use and rely on fossil fuels.
If the Executive Branch Emissions Transparency Act, authored by U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), becomes law, the carbon emissions resulting from Czar John Kerry’s recent trip to Europe would be made public.
Before entering the Biden administration, Czar Kerry was infamously caught taking a private jet to Iceland to accept a climate award.
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