What eventually became a shouting match with phrases like “boo” and “young lady” being thrown around started with a question about petrochemicals. Higgins — who calls fossil fuels “the lifeblood of our modern society” — asked Raya Salter, founder of the Energy Justice Law and Policy Center, a public interest law firm., what was her plan to deal with the abundance of products made with chemical compounds derived from fossil fuels. “Whatever you have. Your clothes, your glasses, the car you have here, your phone, the table you are sitting on, the chair, the carpet under your feet, everything you have is petrochemical products. What would you do with it? Tell the world!” Higgins told Salter, who is also a member of the New York State Climate Action Council, an environmental body affiliated with state government. Salter responded by saying, “If I had that power, I actually don’t need that power because what I would do is ask you, sir, from Louisiana…” before Higgins interrupted. The next two and a half minutes were marked by a tense back-and-forth in which Higgins and Salter tried to talk over each other. Salter asked Higgins to “search your heart and ask your God what you’re doing to black people and poor people in Louisiana,” who she said were some of the most affected by pollutants released from petrochemical plants. The Republican congressman responded by saying, “My good lady, I’m trying to give you the floor, boo,” and asked, “Okay, but what would you do?” EPA Announces ‘Bold’ Action to Monitor Pollution in ‘Cancer Alley’ “Don’t you have an answer, girl? About what to do with petrochemicals? So go ahead,” Higgins continued. “We need to get away from petrochemicals, we need to shut down petrochemical facilities in your state and get away from plastic,” Salter replied. Louisiana produces more natural gas than all but two states nationwide, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The state’s 16 oil refineries, which are capable of processing about 3.2 million barrels of crude oil per day, make up about 20 percent of the country’s refining capacity. Much of this infrastructure is concentrated along Louisiana’s southern-facing Gulf of Mexico region – which is part of the region Higgins represents. Higgins noted that LNG projects in his area help reduce carbon emissions. LNG has been hailed as a transition energy source in the move toward carbon neutrality, and amid Russia’s war in Ukraine, the Biden administration is ramping up natural gas deliveries to Europe in hopes of controlling the energy crisis. But while LNG produces fewer carbon emissions than fossil fuels like coal and oil, it’s not entirely clean, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental nonprofit. The oil and gas industries ranked among the top five contributors to Higgins’ campaign in the 2021-2022 election cycle, according to data from OpenSecrets, a campaign finance watchdog. The Republican lawmaker has also championed the economic importance of fossil fuels. Last year he introduced a resolution challenging the Biden administration to operate the White House without using products derived from petrochemicals. The bill was referred to a House subcommittee in February 2021 and has not been debated since. “Modern life is not possible without the oil and gas industry. These energy sources power the world, and petroleum-based products are found in almost everything everywhere,” Higgins said in a statement at the time. Administration awards Gulf of Mexico drilling leases to oil giants That was the point he was trying to make Thursday — but the way he made his remarks shocked some Democratic members of Congress. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (DN.Y.) went so far as to apologize for “the behavior of this committee and what we just saw.” “I just want you to know that in the four years I’ve been on this committee, I’ve never seen any member of Congress — Republican or Democrat — disrespect a witness the way I’ve seen them disrespect you today,” Ocasio, Cortez said. to Salter. “I don’t care what party he’s in. I’ve never seen anything like this before. For the gentleman from Louisiana and the comfort he felt in yelling at you like that, there’s more than one way to get a point across.” “Frankly, men who treat women like that in public, I’m afraid of how they treat them in private,” Ocasio-Cortez added. Higgins’ office did not immediately respond to a request for comment early Friday. But he told the Hill in a statement that he wasn’t going to let “left-wing activists” sway him. “When radicals appear before my Committee with an attitude of talking anti-American trash, they can expect to be handled. I really don’t care if I hurt anyone’s feelings while I’m fighting to preserve our Democracy,” he said in the report. Video footage of Ocasio-Cortez’s critical remarks — which were widely echoed by liberals online — and the verbal back-and-forth began surfacing Thursday on social media. A clip showing the exchange between Higgins and Salter had garnered more than 560,000 views on Twitter by early Friday. On Thursday afternoon, the GOP lawmaker repeated what he said, sharing a video of the back-and-forth and urging his followers to “watch my exchange with an independent climate activist from today [House Oversight] Committee hearing.’ Salter was unharmed, he said. “Thanks for the support! I don’t mind fossil fuel friends!!!” he wrote on Twitter.
