Obama Nominations in Key Energy and Environment Posts
Monday, December 15th, 2008 by KarinaToday, President-elect Obama’s nominated Steven Chu for Energy Secretary, Carol Browner for White House policy coordinator for energy and climate issues, Lisa Jackson for Environmental Protection Agency Administrator and Nancy Sutley for Director of the White House Council on Environmental Quality.
Speaker Pelosi on the nominations:
President-elect Obama has assembled an extraordinary ‘green team’ that is more than equal to the enormous task of protecting our planet, launching a clean energy economy with millions of green jobs, and providing a more affordable and secure energy future.
Californians are particularly proud of the selection of Nobel physics laureate Steven Chu as our next Secretary of Energy and the first Asian-American to hold this prestigious post. Dr. Chu brings the facts and strong persuasive skills to the energy and climate debate, as well as a track record working with the private sector to find market-driven solutions.
President-elect Obama has demonstrated his unprecedented commitment to presidential-level leadership on energy independence and global warming by creating the position of White House coordinator for energy issues. In this role, Carol Browner will bring together the views of all of our new President’s energy advisors, including Secretary-designate Chu, the nominee to lead the Environmental Protection Agency, Lisa Jackson, and the next head of the White House Council on Environmental Policy, Nancy Sutley.
I look forward to working with our new President and his green energy team in the new Congress to meet the twin challenges of making America energy independent and reducing global warming.
Congressman Edward J. Markey, Chairman of the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming:
After eight long years of global warming denial and delay by the Bush administration, President-elect Obama has assembled a team that will put ‘energy’ back into the Department of Energy, ‘protection’ back into the Environmental Protection Agency, and finally bring climate into serious discussion at the White House.
Finding the perfect mix of science, experience, and political savvy, President-elect Obama has assembled a world class team to lead America in the fight against global warming and place our nation on a path to a clean energy future.
The unprecedented selection of Dr. Steven Chu as Secretary of Energy marks the first time a Nobel laureate has been nominated to serve at the cabinet level. Carol Browner brings unmatched climate experience and political leadership to the White House, while Heather Zichal — who proudly served my home state of Massachusetts as Senator John Kerry’s legislative director — will help the Obama Administration navigate Capitol Hill. Rounding out the new team are Lisa Jackson and Nancy Sutley, who have demonstrated success in creating efficiency and climate programs in the true action centers of clean energy fight - our cities and states.
I commend the president-elect for his selection of Dr. Chu. Not since President Kennedy named MIT’s Jerome B. Wiesner to serve as his science advisor, has a presidential appointment reflected the importance of harnessing the talents and energies of our nation’s most brilliant scientists and engineers to transform national policy.
Moreover, with Carol Browner and Heather Zichal at the White House, Lisa Jackson at the EPA, and Nancy Sutley over at the Council on Environmental Quality, the new administration will have an energy and environment team with the skills and judgment needed to meet our energy and environmental challenges. I look forward to working with this excellent team.