Malloy bashes Trump’s choice of Rick Perry as Energy Secretary

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy has taken umbrage with President-elect Donald Trump”™s choice of former Texas Gov. Rick Perry to become the next Secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy.

In a statement released by his office, Malloy engaged in a bit of self-congratulatory accolades by noting the expansion of Connecticut”™s renewable energy solutions “over the past six years.” He condemned the decision to bring Perry to the Energy Department, claiming it was an insult to political and scientific intelligence.

“Appointing a person to lead the very federal agency he called to eliminate is an affront to taxpayers, the industry, and department public servants,” Malloy said. “The public is owed a further explanation regarding the true intention of this nomination, which, on the surface level, is nothing short of contemptuous. Governor Perry is an oil-man from an oil-rich state who is being appointed to lead the department that oversees carbon, renewable and nuclear energy. The contrast between his record and the current Energy Secretary is stark. This agency, which also oversees our nation”™s nuclear weapons program, has been recently led by renowned scientists ”“ scientists who agree humankind is responsible for climate change ”“ a scientific fact that Governor Perry questions. Those who question that we are responsible for global warming cannot seriously be considered for confirmation by the Senate. One need not look too far to find a candidate far more qualified to run this important agency than Governor Perry.”

This is not the first time that Perry ruffled Malloy”™s political feathers. In 2013, while still the governor of Texas, Perry actively sought to lure manufacturers from Connecticut and New York to his state, with a particular focus on local gun makers that were unhappy with Malloy”™s push for more restrictive gun control laws. However, when Perry met with executives from Connecticut firearms companies in Hartford in June 2013, Malloy unexpectedly crashed the meeting, claiming that he was on hand to show some “Yankee hospitality” to the visiting Texan.