HYDE-SMITH FINDS COMMONSENSE DOE BUDGET REFRESHING
Department of Energy Budget Request Reviewed at Senate Energy Committee Hearing
VIDEO: Senator Hyde-Smith and DOE Secretary Wright Discuss Refocusing Office of Fossil Energy.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.) today said the Trump administration’s approach to the nation’s energy policies is “refreshing” after four years of antagonistic policies to stop American oil and gas production.
The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, on which Hyde-Smith serves, today hosted Energy Secretary Christopher Wright at a hearing Wednesday to review the FY2026 budget request for the U.S. Department of Energy.
“I am encouraged by the fact that the Department of Energy is returning to commonsense practices,” Hyde-Smith said following the hearing. “The previous administration’s policies were so misguided, costly, heavy-handed, and did little to improve the energy security of this nation. It’s refreshing that those days are over.
Hyde-Smith asked Wright to discuss his reorganization of DOE, particularly the Office of Fossil Energy.
“In your testimony, you mentioned reorganizing divisions within the Energy Department, including refocusing the Office of Fossil Fuel on its original mission of supporting fossil energy production,” Hyde-Smith said. “Will you discuss how the department plans to strengthen this mission and find innovative ways to help achieve the President’s goal of energy independence through the reorganization of the Office of Fossil Energy?”
Wright testified that the reorganization effort reflects the fact that fossil fuels will continue to be the dominant source of energy for the United States and that this sector doesn’t need “a lot of involvement from the department except for permitting, getting out of the way, issuing LNG permits so you can build infrastructure.”
The Secretary explained that the department had removed hundreds of millions of dollars to be spent on greenhouse gas reduction policies advocated by the previous administration that were based on “torturous math” and “implausible” theories.
“The department will continue to support technologies to maybe find better ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It is a real issue but we should be credible about it and not just throwing money out of it, because it’s expensive,” Wright told Hyde-Smith. “As you and I when we first connected, we’re about commonsense, things that make sense. If we can spend a dollar and get $2 of benefits, we’ll do that every day and on Sundays, too. We want to critically look at things: is this making our country better, is this making our world better or not.”
“Your approach is very refreshing,” Hyde-Smith replied.
In his opening statement, Wright said budget recommendations support President Trump’s commitment to leverage the nation’s abundant supply of oil, natural gas, and coal to provide affordable, reliable, and secure energy for Americans. He pointed out that the ongoing expansion of liquified natural gas terminal capacity could double LNG exports by 2030.
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https://www.energy.senate.gov/hearings/2025/6/full-committee-hearing-to-examine-the-president-s-budget-request-for-the-u-s-department-of-the-energy-for-fiscal-year-2026