By Michael Brooks
The U.S. Senate on Monday voted 70-15 to confirm Dan Brouillette as secretary of energy.
Brouillette spent most of the day as acting secretary, after Rick Perry resigned on Sunday. Prior to that he had served as deputy secretary since August 2017, when the Senate confirmed him 79-17.
His confirmation was expected. He enjoyed mostly bipartisan support at his nomination hearing last month before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, which quickly moved to advance him to the floor by a 16-4 vote. (See Danly, Brouillette Advance to Senate Floor.)
The Senate on Nov. 21 voted 74-18 to invoke cloture on Brouillette’s nomination just before it adjourned for the month, setting up Monday’s vote.
Shortly before the vote, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) called for a delay on Brouillette’s confirmation until the Senate received more information about Perry’s role in U.S.-Ukrainian relations, central to the House of Representatives’ inquiry into impeaching President Trump.
Wyden cited the fact that Perry had traveled to Ukraine in May for the inauguration of President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and provided him with a list of suggestions for the supervisory board of Naftogaz, the country’s state-owned energy company. The Associated Press reported that two of Perry’s political supporters secured a potentially lucrative oil and gas exploration deal from the Ukrainian government soon after the inauguration, and that one of them, Michael Bleyzer, was on Perry’s list.
Bill Taylor, the acting U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, testified to the House last month that Perry — along with U.S. Ambassador to the E.U. Gordon Sondland and Kurt Volker, special U.S. envoy to Ukraine — ran a “highly irregular” channel of U.S. policymaking toward Ukraine. Perry has refused to testify before the House. At his ENR Committee hearing, Brouillette said he had no knowledge of any conversations Perry might have had with Ukrainian officials about the matters the House is investigating. (See Brouillette Poised to Become Energy Secretary.)
Wyden noted that Brouillette is already serving as acting secretary. “Western civilization is not going to end if the Senate insists on getting some answers to the questions I’ve presented this afternoon,” he said.
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), ranking member of the ENR Committee, spoke in support of Brouillette. “I know some of my dear colleagues have some concerns about questions they want answered,” he said. “I did get some of those from him. He assured me his answers were accurate and correct.”
