Former congressman Lee Zeldin, President-elect Donald Trump's pick to lead the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), is set to appear before the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works at 10:00 a.m. ET.
If confirmed as EPA administrator, Zeldin is expected to implement Trump's America First energy policies after the Biden-Harris administration destroyed American industry, costing jobs across the energy sector, and further decimated the U.S. economy in the wake of the COVID-19 shutdowns.
A preview of Zeldin's opening statements was shared with Townhall ahead of Thursday's confirmation hearing:
The American people made their voices heard in November, giving President Trump a mandate to lead our nation to prosperity. I am grateful that the President-elect is giving me the opportunity to lead the EPA at this critical time.
Our mission is simple, but essential: To protect human health and the environment. We must do everything in our power to harness the greatness of American innovation with the greatness of American conservation and environmental stewardship. We must ensure we are protecting our environment, while also protecting our economy.
[...]
The American people elected President Trump last November in part due to serious concerns about upward economic mobility and their struggle to make ends meet. Too many of our fellow Americans are trapped in poverty and desperate for a whole-of-government approach to give them a hand up. We can, and we must, protect our precious environment without suffocating the economy.
A big part of this will require building private sector collaboration to promote common sense, smart regulation that will allow American innovation to continue to lead the world.
Within a week of winning the 2024 election, Trump had quickly tapped Zeldin to helm the EPA.
"Lee, with a very strong legal background, has been a true fighter for America First policies," Trump said at the time. "He will ensure fair and swift deregulatory decisions that will be enacted in a way to unleash the power of American businesses, while at the same time maintaining the highest environmental standards, including the cleanest air and water on the planet."
Zeldin was recently named chairman of the Trump-aligned America First Policy Institute's China Policy Initiative, a program working to combat Communist China's influence over the U.S.
In response to his nomination, Zeldin promised that with him in charge of the EPA, "we will restore American energy dominance, revitalize our auto industry to bring back American jobs, make the United States the global leader of Artificial Intelligence advancement, and slash the red tape holding back American workers from upward economic mobility."
Zeldin served four terms in Congress, representing eastern Long Island, before entering the 2022 New York gubernatorial race against Gov. Kathy Hochul and narrowly losing in the deep-blue Empire State. Nevertheless, he historically garnered the most votes for a GOP candidate in 50 years. On the campaign trail, Zeldin vowed to reverse New York's fracking ban, which he said costs critical jobs in the industry.