Jeff Bingaman: “The purpose of the hearing, the focus of it, is to talk about the impacts of climate change on the Intermountain West.”

I would certainly like to thank Senator Bingaman, who just retired just very recently, for the strong support that he has shown me over the years, and including support for this nomination.

It's important that we have a person with substantial knowledge and many varied skills in order to succeed.

He knows the crucial role that Congress plays in setting policy and in overseeing how that policy is carried out.

First we would want a person as Secretary of Energy who had a knowledge of science and engineering.