Heather Leibowitz
Environment New York
New York, NY—President-elect Trump has tapped Exxon Mobil CEO Rex Tillerson as his nominee for secretary of state. Heather Leibowitz, Director of Environment New York, issued the following statement in response:
“We deserve a secretary of state who puts America’s wellbeing and future first. Rex Tillerson has spent his entire career putting the profits and power of Exxon Mobil first, over our health, our environment and the future that America’s children will inherit. His company is one of the nation’s worst air and water polluters. It is one of the world’s leading contributors to global warming. It has a history of funding propaganda designed to mislead Americans about the science of climate change.
“We need a secretary of state, and an administration, who will keep America’s promise to slow global climate change and secure a better future for generations to come. With Tillerson’s nomination coming one day after the first anniversary of the Paris climate agreement, President-elect Trump is sending the worst possible signal at the worst possible moment: We’re entrusting the protection of America’s children from a future of catastrophic climate change to Big Oil.”