House Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer recently announced a probe of the State Department over alleged coordination with environmental groups aiming to counteract coal-based energy. Comer stated in a letter addressed to Secretary of State Antony Blinken that the committee had obtained emails between Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry’s office and environmental groups such as the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) discussing plans to combat the coal industry.
“To meet our goal of 100% carbon pollution-free electricity by 2035, we need to phase out unabated coal, and we urge the world to join us in doing so, while working to grow good-paying clean energy jobs,” Kerry recently stated at COP28 United Nations climate summit in Dubai. Kerry illustrated the goal of ceasing to build new “unabated” coal plants in an effort to phase out the commodity from the global energy mix.
“Together with the Powering Past Coal Alliance, we will be working to accelerate unabated coal phase-out across the world, building stronger economies and more resilient communities,” he said. “The first step is to stop making the problem worse: stop building new unabated coal power plants.”
In the letter, Comer noted his reservations with Kerry joining the PPCA, expressing concerns that nongovernmental organizations and possibly foreign nations could influence him. For example, the NRDC reportedly has significant ties to China. Additionally, Comer was apprehensive about the phase-out of coal as it still produces a considerable percentage of the nation’s energy mix, whereas in 2022, coal provided roughly 20 percent of U.S. electricity.
“Documents produced to the Committee reveal that the State Department sought and received feedback from leftist environmental groups on the [PPCA] and enabled those groups to influence U.S. foreign policy,” Comer wrote in his letter to Blinken. “These documents raise significant concerns that confidential information related to U.S. foreign policy, energy policy, and national security policy, have been shared with these groups, including in off-the-record meetings with Envoy John Kerry.”
Comer further stated that the climate initiatives could threaten American interests, particularly those related to the economy and foreign policy. “The PPCA announcement was the latest example of Envoy Kerry and the Biden Administration taking actions under the guise of climate advocacy that undermine our economic health and threaten foreign policy priorities while avoiding congressional scrutiny,” he added.
The House Oversight and Accountability Chairman referenced a number of instances in which the State Department received “guidance” from the NRDC and PPCA. Comer acknowledged the problematic nature of these relationships, suggesting critical information could be exchanging hands. He explained that if foreign governments were to access such data, it could seriously threaten American national security interests.
“These exchanges raise concerns as to what information Envoy Kerry and the SPEC office are providing to organizations like the NRDC in exchange for this information,” according to the letter. “The Committee is concerned that U.S. government officials providing similar nonpublic information to such groups could enable them to provide it to foreign governments for efforts undermining U.S. national and energy security,” he said.
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