Trump’s Energy Secretary Pick Chris Wright Says the ‘Bright Side’ of Climate Change is Fewer Cold Weather Deaths [Video]

President-Elect Donald Trump’s pick for Energy Secretary, Chris Wright, is making waves with his controversial remarks about climate change. Wright, a Colorado oil and gas executive and vocal supporter of fracking, claimed that the “bright side” of climate change is fewer deaths from extreme cold weather.

The comments were highlighted during a segment on Next with Kyle Clark, where Wright’s perspectives on climate change and energy policy were discussed in detail. Wright, who serves as CEO of Liberty Energy, acknowledged that burning fossil fuels contributes to rising global temperatures but downplayed the risks, stating that the increased deaths from flooding, heat, and droughts would be offset by the reduced deaths from cold-related weather.

Trump emphasized Wright’s expertise in fracking when announcing his nomination, praising his alignment with the administration’s pro-drilling agenda. Wright has repeatedly criticized climate policies, describing the connection between climate change and extreme weather events as “fear-mongering” and rejecting the notion of a climate crisis.

“Efforts to make it harder to get a drilling permit or pipeline don’t change demand,” Wright argued in a Bloomberg segment. “They just push prices up.”

The segment also noted that U.S. oil production is at a record high but could be even higher if restrictions on drilling and pipelines were lifted. Wright has supported opening federally protected lands for oil and gas exploration, aligning with Trump’s goals of expanding domestic energy production and rolling back environmental regulations.

Wright’s nomination and his framing of climate change impacts are expected to face intense scrutiny. While he argues that the economic and social benefits of fossil fuel use outweigh the risks, critics point out that the impacts of climate change, including displacement, biodiversity loss, and severe economic damage, cannot be reduced to a simple calculation of cold versus heat-related deaths.