Tillerson Leaves Out Energy, Climate, & Exxon In Opening Remarks
Originally published on ThinkProgress.
By Natasha Geiling
Exxon CEO Rex Tillerson appeared before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Wednesday morning for his first confirmation hearing as President-elect Donald Trump’s Secretary of State. Tillerson is one of Trump’s more controversial picks, drawing questions from Republicans about his friendly ties to Russia and ire from environmentalists and Democrats for his relationship to Exxon, the world’s largest oil company.
But Tillerson chose to address just one of those controversies in his opening remarks, addressing his views on foreign policy and Russia while remaining completely silent on Exxon, energy, and climate change.
In Tillerson’s opening statement, which measured 2,155 words, the Exxon CEO mentioned Russia nine times, China nine times, and human rights six times. But he did not once utter the words “climate change,” “energy,” “oil,” or “ExxonMobil,” an omission that several reporters first highlighted on Twitter.
Read more: Exxon CEO Rex Tillerson didn’t mention energy, climate, or Exxon in his opening remarks
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