What eventually became a shouting match with phrases such as “boo” and “young lady” being thrown around began with a question about petrochemicals. Higgins — who calls fossil fuels “the lifeblood of our modern society” — asked Raya Salter, founder of the Center for Energy Justice Law and Policy, a public interest law firm., what was her plan to deal with the plethora of products made with chemicals derived from fossil fuels.
“Everything you have – your clothes, your glasses, the car you got here in, your phone, the table you’re sitting on, the chair, the carpet under your feet – everything you have is petrochemical products. What would you do with that? 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 don’t actually need that power, because what I would do is ask you, gentleman from Louisiana,” before Higgins cut him off.
The next 2 1/2 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 for black and poor people in Louisiana,” who she said were some of the most affected by pollutants released by petrochemical plants.
The Republican lawmaker responded by saying, “My good lady, I’m trying to give you the floor, boo,” and asked, “Okay, what are you going to do?”
“You don’t have an answer, do you, lady? What should be done with petrochemical products? So I will continue,” Higgins continued.
Salter responded that “we need to get out of petrochemicals, we need to shut down petrochemical facilities in your state and get out of plastics.”
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, account for about 20 percent of the country’s refining capacity. Much of this infrastructure is concentrated along Louisiana’s southern Gulf of Mexico region — which is part of the district Higgins represents.
Higgins noted that liquefied natural gas projects in his district help reduce carbon emissions. Liquefied natural gas has been hailed as a transitional energy source in the move toward carbon neutrality, and amid Russia’s war in Ukraine, the Biden administration is increasing natural gas shipments to Europe in hopes of controlling the energy crisis. But while liquefied natural gas 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 defended the economic importance of fossil fuels. Last year, he introduced a resolution challenging the Biden administration to operate a petrochemical-free White House. 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 feed the world, and petroleum-based products are found in almost everything everywhere,” Higgins said in a statement at the time.
That was the point he was trying to make Thursday — but the way he delivered his comments shocked some Democratic members of Congress. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (DN.Y.) went so far as to apologize for “the conduct 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 told Salter. “I don’t care which party they belong to. I’ve never seen anything like it. For the Louisiana gentleman and the comfort he felt in shouting at you like that, there’s more than one way to get a point across.”
“Honestly, men who treat women like this 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. However, he told the Hill in a statement that he wasn’t going to let “left-wing activists” run over him.
“When radicals appear before my Committee with an attitude of talking anti-American trash, they can expect to be dealt with. I don’t care if I hurt someone’s feelings while I’m fighting to preserve our Republic,” he told the paper.
Video footage of Ocasio-Cortez critical remarks — which were widely echoed by liberals online — and verbal backlash in turn trended on social media Thursday. A clip showing the exchange between Higgins and Salter had amassed more than 560,000 views on Twitter by early Friday.
On Thursday afternoon, the GOP lawmaker doubled down on what he said, sharing a video back and forth and urging his followers to “watch my exchange with an independent climate activist from today [House Oversight] Commission hearing.”
Salter claimed she was unharmed.
“Thanks for the support! I don’t mind fossil fuel friends!!!” it has written on Twitter.
