Trump's Interior And Energy Secretaries Cheer On Natural Gas Export Industry In Gulf Coast

The planned expansion of a massive liquified natural gas facility in southeast Louisiana is a beacon for a U.S. energy policy that doubles down on oil and gas exports under President Donald Trump, two members of his Cabinet told a crowd of cheering workers Thursday.

"The prior administration had a full-on attack against U.S. energy," Interior Secretary Doug Burgum told workers at petrochemical firm Venture Global's liquified natural gas facility in Port Sulphur. Venture Global plans an 18 billion expansion in the area for exporting LNG to Europe and Asia. "President Trump is fighting for you every day and he's fighting because he believes that we have U.S. energy dominance."

Burgum stood alongside Energy Secretary Chris Wright . The two head a new National Energy Dominance Council focused on spurring U.S. oil and gas production and reversing checks on fossil fuels adopted during President Joe Biden's administration.

Wright, a fossil fuel executive who has been a vocal critic against efforts to fight climate change, told the assembled workers he planned to advance Trump's agenda to "unleash American energy, unleash American business and unleash the American spirit."

The pair pooh-poohed former Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm's warning that "unfettered exports" of liquified natural gas could drive up domestic wholesale prices and increase planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions - a statement reflecting the findings of a Department of Energy report released in December. Granholm served under Biden.