Biden’s energy secretary nominee admits some jobs may be 'sacrificed' to achieve climate agenda

President Biden's nominee for energy secretary, Jennifer Granholm, admitted Wednesday during her confirmation hearing that some jobs in the oil and gas industry may be "sacrificed" as a part the administration's climate agenda.

The exchange began when Republican Sen. John Barrasso (Wyo.), the ranking member of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, noted that tens of thousands of jobs could be lost in states like New Mexico, Wyoming, and Colorado if Biden's new executive order pausing oil and gas leases on federal land is extended.

"A long-term ban on oil and gas leasing would cost about 62,000 jobs in New Mexico ... about 33,000 jobs in Wyoming, and about 18,000 jobs in Colorado," Barrasso assessed, before directing the question at Granholm.