Kathleen Hartnett White

Kathleen Hartnett White

Credentials

Background

Kathleen Hartnett White is the distinguished senior fellow-in-residence and director of the Armstrong Center for Energy & the Environment at the Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF). She is also a senior fellow of TPPF’s “Life:Powered” project, which promotes fossil fuel use. Hartnett White previously worked as Chairman and Commissioner of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ). Prior to 2001, she served as then-Governor George W. Bush’s appointee to the Texas Water Development Board, where she sat until appointed to TCEQ.11Kathleen Hartnett White, Distinguished Senior Fellow-In-Residence & Director, Armstrong Center for Energy & the Environment,” Texas Public Policy Foundation. Archived July 4, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/2mZEt 12KATHLEEN HARTNETT WHITE, DIRECTOR, ARMSTRONG CENTER FOR ENERGY & THE ENVIRONMENT & SENIOR FELLOW, LIFE: POWERED,” Texas Public Policy Foundation. Archived August 22, 2018. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/SWOU1

In October 2017, Trump tapped Hartnett White to lead the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ), pending confirmation. She was also a member of Trump’s ”economic advisory team” in 2016. White’s nomination was withdrawn after being sent back to the White House when it adjourned in late 2017.13Steve Horn. “Trump Names Climate Denier Kathleen Hartnett White to Head White House Environmental Council,” DeSmog, October 13, 2017. 14(Press Release). “EXPANSION OF TRUMP ECONOMIC ADVISORY COUNCIL,” PR2016.org, August 11, 2016. Archived September 28, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/5h88Y 15AP. “Climate change sceptic Kathleen Hartnett White dropped as Trump environment expert,” The Guardian, February 3, 2018. Archived August 22, 2018. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/jR0te

A 2003 profile of Hartnett White in the Big Bend Sentinel notes that before being appointed chairwoman of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) she grew up on her family’s ranch near Salina, Kansas, “which is not quite the center of Kansas but is about as close to the middle of the country as one can get.”16Dan Keane. “Valentine rancher named TCEQ chairwoman as environmental issues heat up in West Texas” (PDF), The Big Bend Sentinel, Vol. 70 No. 30 (October 23, 2003).

After graduating Salina High School in 1967, she went on to earn bachelor’s and master’s degrees in East Asian studies and comparative religion at Stanford. During her studies, she kept ties to the family business, even writing her thesis while living and working at her family’s ranch. After beginning studies for her doctorate at Princeton, Hartnett White decided to leave for Washington, D.C. where she became active with with Republican Party and ranching circles. She eventually received appointment in the second Reagan Administration to a position in the U.S. Department of Agriculture. She was later special assistant to First Lady Nancy Reagan.17Tim Unruh. “Possible EPA chief has Salina connection,” Salina Journal, December 1, 2016. Archived November 10, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/eToPm 18Dan Keane. “Valentine rancher named TCEQ chairwoman as environmental issues heat up in West Texas” (PDF), The Big Bend Sentinel, Vol. 70 No. 30 (October 23, 2003).

After working for several years in Washington, including a position as director of private lands and the environment for the National Cattlemen’s Association, Hartnett White returned to Texas and enrolled in law school at Texas Tech University. In 1999, White was appointed to the Texas Water Development Board, a position she kept for two years before moving to TCEQ. As of 2003, her and her husband relocated to Rosanky Texas where they breed Jack Russel terriers.19Dan Keane. “Valentine rancher named TCEQ chairwoman as environmental issues heat up in West Texas” (PDF), The Big Bend Sentinel, Vol. 70 No. 30 (October 23, 2003).

More recently, Kathleen Hartnett White was a director of the TPPF’s Fueling Freedom project, which seeks to “Explain the forgotten moral case for fossil fuels” while “building a multi-state coalition to push back against the EPA’s unconstitutional efforts to take over the electric power sector by regulating CO2 via the Clean Power Plan.” The Fueling Freedom project also seeks to “End the regulation of CO2 as a pollutant.” She is also a member of the Advisory Committee for the CO2 Coalition, formerly known as the George C. Marshall Institute, a group that maintains that increased CO2 is beneficial for life on Earth.20Home,” Fueling Freedom. Archived November 13, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/y99w1 21What We Do…Fueling Freedom. Archived November 13, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/g8bgS 22About,” CO2 Coalition. Archived April 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/9FCJk 23Gayathri Vaidyanathan. “Think tank that cast doubt on climate change science morphs into smaller one,” ClimateWire, December 10, 2015. Archived July 4, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/fTPko

In addition to her former position as director of public lands and the environment for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) in Washington, D.C. she has also served as director of the Ranching Heritage Association. NCBA opposed the EPA’s endangerment finding rule in 2010.24Kathleen Hartnett White, Distinguished Senior Fellow-In-Residence & Director, Armstrong Center for Energy & the Environment,” Texas Public Policy Foundation. Archived July 4, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/2mZEt 25Kirsten Korosec. “Food Fight: Big Beef Challenges EPA Climate Change Finding,” CBS, January 4, 2010. Archived February 15, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/yPWxl

Kathleen Hartnett White is co-author, with Stephen Moore, of Fueling Freedom: Exposing the Mad War on Energy where she argues against the shift to renewable energy. According to a review of the book in American Thinker, “Rather than worrying that carbon energy resources are destroying the planet and looking to renewable energy as an alternative, the authors suggest we should celebrate the vast contributions fossil fuels made during the past century.” Rolling Stone described Fueling Freedom as “a hymnal to all things fossil fuels, the dirty-energy, non-satirical equivalent of Thank You for Smoking.” 26Kathleen Hartnett White, Distinguished Senior Fellow-In-Residence & Director, Armstrong Center for Energy & the Environment,” Texas Public Policy Foundation. Archived July 4, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/2mZEt,27Janet Levy. “Green Energy Revolution Folly,” American Thinker, September 19, 2016. Archived November 13, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/xJOAx 28Antonia Juhasz. “President Trump’s Energy Policy Would Be a Nightmare,” Rolling Stone, September 29, 2016. Archived November 28, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/c68oe

TheTexas Observer found that the TPPF has been funded by ExxonMobil, Chevron, the Koch network, RJ Reynolds, the Heartland Institute, and others among what they describe as the “Who’s Who of Texas polluters.“29Forrest Wilder. “Revealed: The Corporations and Billionaires that Fund the Texas Public Policy Foundation,” Texas Observer, August 24, 2012. Archived November 28, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/TOvci

Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ)

From 2003 to 2007, Hartnett White was the leader of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) appointed by Rick Perry. The Texas Observer noted that as TCEQ leader, Hartnett White voted to construct a new coal plant near Dallas despite opposition from mayors and officials in 24 cities and countries. When judges reviewed the plant’s air permit, telling TCEQ that its pollution controls would be insufficient, Hartnett White argued that the owner of the plant was “under no obligation to prove its pollution controls would work.”30Texas Environmentalists: Kathleen Hartnett White Would be ‘Disaster’ as EPA Chief,” Texas Observer, November 30, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/adi1g

A 2003 Texas State Audit found that the TCEQ did “not consistently ensure violators are held accountable” and polluters “often have economic benefits that exceed their penalties, which could reduce their incentive to comply.”31“An Audit Report on The Commission on Environmental Quality’s Enforcement and Permitting Functions for Selected Programs” (PDF), State Auditor’s Office, December 2003.

Emails from the TCEQ revealed that Hartnett had led the group while it was involved in what one government watchdog group described as “conspiracy at the TCEQ of the highest order.” Despite clear rules dictating federal limits on radiation in drinking water, KHOU 11 News reported that “the agency’s top commissioners directed staff to continue lowering radiation test results, in defiance of federal EPA rules.”32Texas politicians knew agency hid the amount of radiation in drinking water,” KHOU 11 News, May 19, 2011. Archived May 28, 2014. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/EqISh

The Environmental Working Group (EWG) alleges that Hartnett-White “deliberately falsified data” to get around federal drinking water regulations, leaving people at risk of cancer, and opposes her nomination at the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ).33Bill Walker and Wicitra Mahotama. “170 MILLION IN U.S. DRINK RADIOACTIVE TAP WATER. TRUMP NOMINEE FAKED DATA TO HIDE CANCER RISK,” EWG, January 11, 2018. Archived January 22, 2018. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/J2yGi

Before he chose her to become chairman of TCEQ, then-Governor Rick Perry had also appointed her to the Texas Water Development Board.34Texas Environmentalists: Kathleen Hartnett White Would be ‘Disaster’ as EPA Chief,” Texas Observer, November 30, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/adi1g

Donald Trump’s Economic Advisory Team

Kathleen Hartnett White was named as a member of Donald Trump’s “economic advisory team” in 2016. The team promised to “get the American economy back on track.” Trump, who also added fellow climate change denier Myron Ebell to his team in September 2016, has called global warming “bullshit” and promised he would “cancel” the Paris climate agreement as well as roll back President Obama’s actions on climate change.35(Press Release). “EXPANSION OF TRUMP ECONOMIC ADVISORY COUNCIL,” PR2016.org, August 11, 2016. Archived September 28, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/5h88Y 36Trump Picks Top Climate Skeptic to Lead EPA Transition,” Scientific American, September 26, 2016.

“I think a lot of things are way too premature to try to characterize meaningfully, but it would be my lifelong work — it would be an honor to serve in his administration,” said Hartnett White.37Among Texans, race is on for jobs in Trump administration,The Texas Tribune, November 10, 2016. Archived November 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/o0bdj

Hartnett White said that her book, Fueling Freedom, was a primary reason she was asked to join Trump’s team, “along with her work as an environmental regulator and their shared devotion to the oil shale (or fracking) revolution.”38Antonia Juhasz. “President Trump’s Energy Policy Would Be a Nightmare,” Rolling Stone, September 29, 2016. Archived November 28, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/c68oe

Hartnett White has long called for restraint of what she called the “imperial EPA,” and in June 2016 she promoted the bill H.R. 3880, “The Stopping the EPA Overreach Act,” while describing carbon dioxide as a “necessary nutrient for plant life.” Later in 2016, Hartnett White said that while we need not necessarily do away with the EPA as Trump has planned, still “we don’t need regulation; we’re already doing a good job.”39Kathleen Hartnett White. “Restrain the imperial EPA,” The Hill, June 17, 2016. Archived July 4, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/gjgJh 40Andrew Topf. “If Trump wins, he’ll scrap Clean Power Plan and go after EPA,” Mining.com, September 23, 2016. Archived November 13, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/tSWfG

Rolling Stone comments that when Trump announced that his “environmental agenda” would be “be guided by true specialists in conservation” that “He may well have meant Hartnett White,” given her experience in government regulation working on the Texas Water Development board under then Governor George W. Bush, as well as chair of the Texas Environmental Quality Commission under Governor Rick Perry. Hartnett White told Rolling Stone that she would “love to serve” in a Trump administration if given the opportunity.41Antonia Juhasz. “President Trump’s Energy Policy Would Be a Nightmare,” Rolling Stone, September 29, 2016. Archived November 28, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/c68oe

Stance on Climate Change

Kathleen Hartnett White has said the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) ignores natural causes of climate change. She has also argued that Carbon Dioxide has been wrongfully regulated as a pollutant.

November 8, 2017

During her confirmation hearing to become chair of the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) under the Trump administration, Hartnett White expressed doubt about the causes of climate change (starting at [49:19]):42Hearing on the Nominations of Kathleen Hartnett White to be a Member of the Council on Environmental Quality and Andrew Wheeler to be Deputy Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency,” U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, November 8, 2017. Archived November 10, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/Xpnvy

Senator Ben Cardin (Dem): It seems to me that you don’t believe that climate change is real.

KHW: “I am uncertain …”

Ben Cardin: “You’re uncertain?”

KHW: “No, no, I’m not. I’m sorry. I jumped ahead of myself. Climate change is of course, is if course real.”

Cardin: “Humans activity affects climate change? “

KHW: “More than likely, but the extent to which I think is very uncertain, and my …”

Cardin:” Would you rely on scientists to give you that answer or not?”

KHW: “No, I’ve had that question for a very long time.”

October 19, 2016

Speaking with Ars Technica, in her role as a Trump campaign advisor, Kathleen Hartnett White suggested the IPCC has ignored natural causes of climate change:43Hillary Clinton vs Donald Trump on science, energy, and the climate,” Ars Technica, October 19, 2016. Archived November 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/W2kEp

“[The IPCC] never really takes on an explanation of how the other variables in climate affect climate. […] It never takes on the Sun. There are a number of very, very senior atmospheric physicists—one I think of in particular, Fritz Varenholt, who wrote a book called The Neglected Sun. As a scientist, he’s just appalled that better knowledge about the role of the Sun would not be a part of the science.”44Hillary Clinton vs Donald Trump on science, energy, and the climate,” Ars Technica, October 19, 2016. Archived November 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/W2kEp

September 29, 2015

Writing at Townhall.com, Kathleen Hartnett White described what she calls “propaganda” surrounding the climate change issue, what she suggests is a wrongful description of carbon dioxide as a pollutant, and she contends CO2’s impact on climate remains a “question”:45Kathleen Hartnett White. “Clearing the Air on Climate Change,” Townhall, September 29, 2015. Archived July 4, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/tsqtp

“”No matter how many times, [sic] the President, EPA, and press rant about ‘dirty carbon pollution,’ there is no pollution about carbon itself! As a dictionary will tell you, carbon is the chemical basis of all life. Our flesh, blood, and bones are built of carbon. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is the gas of life on this planet, an essential nutrient for plant growth on which human life depends. How craftily our government has masked these fundamental realities and the environmental benefits of fossil fuels!” White wrote.46Kathleen Hartnett White. “Clearing the Air on Climate Change,” Townhall, September 29, 2015. Archived July 4, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/tsqtp

The Daily Beast notes that White conflated carbon pollution from coal, particulate matter like soot and dust, which is responsible for more than 3 million deaths annual with carbon dioxide which, while it is an “essential nutrient” has “has hit concentration levels in the atmosphere not seen for 125,000 years.47Kathleen Hartnett White, Trump’s Environment Pick: Fossil Fuels Ended Slavery, CO2 Is Good for You,” The Daily Beast, January 31, 2018. Archived February 2, 2018. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/UkAN1

White also pushes what The Daily Beast describes as a “combination of lies and myths” when she wrote that “As the evidence for unprecedented warming temperatures, extreme weather events, declining Arctic ice, and rising sea levels wanes, the entrenched warmists’ grasp for familiar tags such as ‘pollution’ or ‘environmental protection’ to sanitize their grand schemes to decarbonize human societies.”

June, 2014

In a June 2014 TPPF policy document, titled “Fossil Fuels: The Moral Case” (PDF), Kathleen Hartnett White wrote:48Kathleen Hartnett White. “Fossil Fuels: The Moral Case” (PDF), Texas Public Policy Foundation, June 2014. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

“IPCC science claims of 95 percent certainty that human activity is causing climate calamity are more like the dogmatic claims of ideologues and clerics than scientific conclusions.”49Kathleen Hartnett White. “Fossil Fuels: The Moral Case” (PDF), Texas Public Policy Foundation, June 2014. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Key Quotes

November 8, 2017

During her initial confirmation hearing, Hartnett-White described CO2 as plant food (at [51:00]):50Hearing on the Nominations of Kathleen Hartnett White to be a Member of the Council on Environmental Quality and Andrew Wheeler to be Deputy Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency,” U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, November 8, 2017. Archived November 10, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/Xpnvy

Senator Ben Cardin (Dem): “Do you stand by your statement that carbon dioxide, greenhouse gases, are not dangerous at all to our environment?”

KHW: “[…] CO2 in the atmosphere has none of the characteristics of a pollutant that, you know, contaminates and fouls and all of that, that can have a direct impact on human health, as an atmospheric gas it’s a plant nutrient.”

Senator Sheldon Whitehouse then asks Hartnett White about her understanding of global warming’s effects on the world’s oceans (starts at [1:29:00])

Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (Dem): “Are you aware of anything that’s happening in the oceans that relates to fossil fuel emissions?”

KHW: “There are probably a number of them.”

Whitehouse: “Name a few.”

KHW: “I have a very superficial understanding as far as a … but, um, acidification issues is one. I’ve not read widely or deeply, I have read some. Which, different perspectives, some of which suggest that it’s a very, very fragile set of changes and acidification and others that say that, for you know long eons of geological history, there are certain places of certain oceans, may have changes in acidification levels but not others. So it’s such that changes either up or down are not inherently a problem. […]”

Whitehouse asked further questions on oceans, starting at [2:15:00]:

Whitehouse: “Of the additional heat that has been captured in the atmosphere as a result of greenhouse gas emissions …”

KHW: “No.”

Whitehouse: “Do you know how much of that excess heat has been captured in the oceans? Is it more or less than 50%? Do you even know that?”

KHW: “Um, no. “

Whitehouse: “No, ok. Ah.”

KHW: “But I believe there are differences of opinions on that, that there’s not one right answer.”

Whitehouse: “Really? Do you think there’s actual serious difference of opinion on whether it’s below 50%?”

KHW: “Yes.”

Whitehouse: “You think there is?”

KHW: “Yes, unless I’m mistaken.”

Whitehouse: “There is difference of opinion as to how much of that has been captured by the ocean? You think that there’s serious scientific opinion that it’s below 50%”

KHW: “Yes.”

Whitehouse: “Ok, wow.”

November 2016

Speaking with the Washington Examiner, Kathleen Hartnett White discussed Donald Trump’s plans to revive the coal industry.51John Siciliano. ”Trump’s plan to bring back coal country places EPA in crosshairs,Washington Examiner, November 14, 2016. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/JeeoJ

“[Trump]’s very much for clean air and clean water” Hartnett White said. “But the better home for considering this discussion about carbon dioxide and climate is in the Department of Energy.”52John Siciliano. ”Trump’s plan to bring back coal country places EPA in crosshairs,Washington Examiner, November 14, 2016. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/JeeoJ

According to Hartnett White, climate change concerns “are really a discussion about energy, not really a discussion about environmental protection.” She described CO2 regulations as “the killer for coal.”53John Siciliano. ”Trump’s plan to bring back coal country places EPA in crosshairs,Washington Examiner, November 14, 2016. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/JeeoJ

Speaking of the Clean Air Act’s regulation of CO2, Hartnett White said that the Clean Air Act “was never designed to control a pollutant that ubiquitous that has no adverse environmental impacts on people.” She said that “Carbon dioxide has no adverse impact in the air we breath at all. It’s a harmless trace gas that is actually an essential nutrient for plants.”54John Siciliano. ”Trump’s plan to bring back coal country places EPA in crosshairs,Washington Examiner, November 14, 2016. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/JeeoJ

Sepetember 2016

In an interview on “The Right Perspective,” Hartnett White described what she called the “dark side” of belief in global warming, CNN reported:55Andrew Kaczynski. “Trump pick for top environmental post called belief in global warming a ‘kind of paganism’,” CNN, October 19, 2017. Archived January 22, 2018. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/ky7ZO

“There’s a real dark side of the kind of paganism – the secular elites’ religion now – being evidently global warming,” Hartnett White said.

Speaking about climate policy with regards to the United Nations climate change program Hartnett-White added:

” […] We’re talking about, you know, one-world state ruled by planetary managers, you know to kind of allocate our little portion of grub and energy, but they’re open and adamant about it.”

September 2016

Speaking with Rolling Stone, Hartnett White declared:56Antonia Juhasz. “President Trump’s Energy Policy Would Be a Nightmare,” Rolling Stone, September 29, 2016. Archived November 28, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/c68oe

“We’re not a democracy if science dictates what our rules are.”57Antonia Juhasz. “President Trump’s Energy Policy Would Be a Nightmare,” Rolling Stone, September 29, 2016. Archived November 28, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/c68oe

September 2016

While Kathleen Hartnett White has said that we don’t need to dismantle the EPA entirely, she did say to SNL that “we don’t need regulation” and that rather the EPA would only be needed to “maintain the achievements reached”:58Kip Atkinson Keen and Molly Christian. “To stoke growth, Trump adviser calls for overhaul of environmental regulations,” S&P Global Market Intelligence. Retrieved from SNL.com. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

“A basic recommendation I would make to anyone running for president is we need to review this avalanche of rules that has been promulgated over the last eight years and possibly rescind. […] and replace [them] with new rules,” Hartnett White said.

“Again this doesn’t mean we don’t need EPAwe don’t need regulation; we’re already doing a good job. No. Just to maintain the achievements reached […] is a very important function for an administrative agency [like the EPA]” (Emphasis added).59Kip Atkinson Keen and Molly Christian. “To stoke growth, Trump adviser calls for overhaul of environmental regulations,” S&P Global Market Intelligence. Retrieved from SNL.com. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

July 2016

Writing in the National Review, Hartnett White declared:60The GOP Platform Is Right: Coal Is Clean,” National Review, July 21, 2016. Archived November 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/e2xrs

“Now, the plentiful, reliable, and affordable energy source that is coal can be regarded as clean.”61The GOP Platform Is Right: Coal Is Clean,” National Review, July 21, 2016. Archived November 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/e2xrs

March 30, 2016

Writing in The Hill, Hartnett White said:

“Renewables are a false hope that simply won’t work.”62Renewables are incapable of replacing hydrocarbons at scale,” The Hill, March 30, 2015. Archived November 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/8P6ju

“[I]ntermittent renewables are parasitic on back-up power from reliable fossil fuels”63Renewables are incapable of replacing hydrocarbons at scale,” The Hill, March 30, 2015. Archived November 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/8P6ju

December 2015

In a statement via the Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF), Hartnett-White lays out why she believes CO2 due to man-made emissions is beneficial, causing a “greening” of the Earth:64Kathleen Hartnett White discusses the benefits of CO2,” YouTube video uploaded by user “Texas Public Policy Foundation,” December 7, 2015. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

“Satellites already show a greening of the Earth, in part from the very small amount of carbon dioxide involved with using fossil fuels,” Hartnett White claims in the video.

June 2014

Writing in her 2015 TPPF publication, “Fossil Fuels: The Moral Case,” Hartnett White claims that increased CO2 in the atmosphere would be beneficial:65“Fossil Fuels: The Moral Case” (PDF), Texas Public Policy Foundatin, June 2014.

“Fossil fuel use and the consequent anthropogenic emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) also have greatly expanded the global food supply.[…] the increased atmospheric concentration of man-made CO2 has enhanced plant growth and thus the world’s food supply,” she wrote.

November 2011

At a forum convened by Americans for Prosperity (AFP), funded by the Koch Family Foundations, Harnett-White said:66Extreme Power Abuse,” Vimeo, uploaded by user AFPhq.

“There is no environmental crisis—in fact, there’s almost no major environmental problems.”

Extreme Power Abuse from AFPhq on Vimeo.

Key Deeds

August 7, 2018

Hartnett-White spoke at the Heartland Institute‘s “America First Energy Conference” (AFEC 2018) in New Orleans, Louisiana.67Speakers,” America First Energy Conference 2018. Archived August 1, 2018. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/mwtga

“The purpose of this event is to promote and expand energy freedom in the United States, as outlined in President Donald Trump’s bold America First Energy Plan, a proposal first released during the 2016 presidential campaign. The president’s plan marks a decisive change in direction from the Obama administration’s ‘war on fossil fuels’ and focus on the theory of catastrophic man-caused climate change,” the conference description reads.68About,” America First Energy Conference 2018. Archived July 23, 2018. Archive.is URL: https://archive.fo/E4Gnt

Hartnett-White spoke on a panel titled “Fueling Freedom and Prosperity.”69KATHLEEN HARTNETT WHITE,” America First Energy Conference 2018. Archived August 1, 2018. Archive URL: https://archive.fo/EbPXU

February 3, 2018

The White House reportedly withdrew its nomination of Kathleen Hartnett-White, two administration officials told The Washington Post. In a statement released February 4, the administration confirmed that Hartnett-White had asked her name be withdrawn from consideration.70Juliet Eilperin and Brady Dennis. “White House to withdraw controversial nominee to head Council on Environmental Quality,” The Washington Post, February 3, 2018. Archived February 3, 2018. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/KZP9X

“I want to thank President Trump for his confidence in me and I will continue to champion his policies and leadership on environmental and energy issues of critical importance to making our nation great, prosperous and secure again,” she said in the statement.71Juliet Eilperin and Brady Dennis. “White House to withdraw controversial nominee to head Council on Environmental Quality,” The Washington Post, February 3, 2018. Archived February 3, 2018. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/KZP9X

Senator Thomas R. Carper (D-Del.) said in a statement that it was “abundantly clear very early on that heading up the Council on Environmental Quality wasn’t the right job for Ms. White.”72Juliet Eilperin and Brady Dennis. “White House to withdraw controversial nominee to head Council on Environmental Quality,” The Washington Post, February 3, 2018. Archived February 3, 2018. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/KZP9X

He added, “Withdrawing Kathleen Hartnett White’s nomination is the right thing to do, and I believe it is past time for this administration to nominate a thoughtful environmental and public health champion to lead this critical office in the federal government.”73Juliet Eilperin and Brady Dennis. “White House to withdraw controversial nominee to head Council on Environmental Quality,” The Washington Post, February 3, 2018. Archived February 3, 2018. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/KZP9X

January 2018

In late December, Hartnett White was forced to return to square one when the Senate sent her nomination for Council on Environmental Quality back to the White House.74Alexander C. Kaufman. “Democrats Claim Victory After Yet Another Trump Environmental Nomination Derails,” HuffPost, December 22, 2017. Archived January 19, 2018. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/W7pQ2

“While we have been able to make progress in recent weeks on several qualified and reasonable environmental nominees, others, like Kathleen Hartnett White and Michael Dourson, have proven far too extreme to hold such important positions or be confirmed by the Senate,” Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), who led opposition to Hartnett-White’s nomination, said in a statement.75Alexander C. Kaufman. “Democrats Claim Victory After Yet Another Trump Environmental Nomination Derails,” HuffPost, December 22, 2017. Archived January 19, 2018. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/W7pQ2

In January, President Trump renominated Kartnett-White. The decision means that she will be required to go back before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee for a new vote, The Washington Examiner notes.76Josh Siegel. “Trump renominates Kathleen Hartnett White for top environmental post,” Washington Examiner, January 8, 2018. Archived January 19, 2018. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/rmBa9

Hartnett-White had faced additional criticism from Democrats in December, when they accused her of plagiarizing 18 of her answers to questions from Congress.77Zahra Hirji. “Democrats Accuse This Trump Nominee Of Plagiarizing Her Answers To Congress About Climate Change, Environmental Justice, And More,” Buzzfeed News, December 12, 2017. Archived January 19, 2018. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/tAo0a

“We are troubled that it appears that you have cut and pasted from the written answers of other nominees in your responses to questions that were submitted to you,” ten Democratic Senators wrote in a letter to Hartnett White, outlining the 18 examples of answers copied from nominees for other positions.78“Dear Ms. White:” (PDF), United States Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, December 12, 2017. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Commenting on her previous confirmation hearing, Sen. Tom Carper said in a statement that “In the 17 years I have been in the Senate, I have never sat through a hearing as excruciating as Ms. White’s.”79Carper Statement on the Resubmission of Kathleen Hartnett White’s Nomination,” U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, January 8, 2018. Archived February 2, 2018.

November 28, 2017

Following Hartnett White’s confirmation hearing, 300 scientists wrote a letter opposing her nomination to run the White House Council on Environmental Quality, “because one thing more dangerous than climate change is lying.”80“Dear Senators” (PDF), November 28, 2017.

“As scientists and scholars, we are alarmed by Ms. Hartnett White’s actions and statements, particularly, her recent assertion that carbon dioxide is not a harmful pollutant. There is unanimous agreement across peer-reviewed climate science that carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases released by human activities are contributing to the harmful effects of climate change. To state otherwise in the face of overwhelming evidence is simply unsupportable,” the scientists wrote in the letter to senators.

Amanda Lynch, a climate scientist at Brown University, drafted the letter. “The thing that tipped me over the edge was her appearance before the Senate where she just couldn’t answer fundamental questions about environmental science that would affect her ability to do her job,” Lynch said, as reported at InsideClimate news.81300 Scientists Oppose Trump Nominee: ‘More Dangerous Than Climate Change is Lying’,” InsideClimate News, November 29, 2017. Archived January 23, 2018. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/SKt34

November 8, 2017

The Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works held a hearing on the nomination of Kathleen Hartnett White to be a member of the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ), and for Andrew Wheeler to be Deputy Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. View Hartnett White’s opening statement here.82Hearing on the Nominations of Kathleen Hartnett White to be a Member of the Council on Environmental Quality and Andrew Wheeler to be Deputy Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency,” U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, November 8, 2017. Archived November 10, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/Xpnvy 83“Opening Statement of Kathleen Hartnett White Nominee for Member, White House Council on Environmental Quality U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works” (PDF), EPW.Senate.gov, November 8, 2017.

Senator Carper said in his opening statement:84Hearing on the Nominations of Kathleen Hartnett White to be a Member of the Council on Environmental Quality and Andrew Wheeler to be Deputy Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency,” U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, November 8, 2017. Archived November 10, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/Xpnvy

“The nominee to carry on this important work must be someone who can build alliances. Someone who can work with Congress and be a credible leader. Unfortunately, in my view the nominee before us today, Kathleen Hartnett White, does not in my opinion meet this standard.

“In her years serving the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, an thereafter, Mrs. White has shown a distain for science. A disregard for the laws and regulations already on the books and a staggering disrespect for people who have views with which she disagrees.

“Mrs. White, who has been asked to hold the top environmental position in the Whitehouse, has shown that she is not only a science denier, but actively promotes misinformation on climate, on ozone, on mercury, particulate matter and other known health hazards that impact our air and our waterways.

“From describing the renewable fuel standard as ‘unethical’ to comparing people who believe in climate programs to ‘pagans’, to saying environmentalism will lead to mass starvation or other large-scale calamities, her tone, her words, her actions, are simply unacceptable.”

Senator Fischer voiced concerns about Hartnett White’s use of “flawed data” as recently as 2014 and 2016 with regards to the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), pointing to a 2014 example of where Hartnett White had made a statement on how “ethanol prices in the United States have led to food riots in several countries over the last few years.” She asked whether they could be confident that Hartnett White would “check data” and “check facts” before offering advice or optoins to the President.85Hearing on the Nominations of Kathleen Hartnett White to be a Member of the Council on Environmental Quality and Andrew Wheeler to be Deputy Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency,” U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, November 8, 2017. Archived November 10, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/Xpnvy

October 12, 2017

As first reported by Hannah Northey on Twitter and later at E&E News, President Donald Trump named Kathleen-Hartnett to chair the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ), pending approval. Rick Perry, who previously appointed Hartnett White to the role she held at the Texas Council on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) from 2004 to 2007, had reportedly advocated for her to run for the position at CEQ.86Trump nominates Kathleen Hartnett White to be a member – and upon confirmation chairwoman – of the Council on Environmental Quality,” Twitter post by user @HMNorthey, October 12, 2017. 87Robin Bravender. “Trump taps CO2 defender to head CEQ,” E&E News, October 13, 2017. 88Steve Horn. “Trump Names Climate Denier Kathleen Hartnett White to Head White House Environmental Council,” DeSmog, October 13, 2017. 89Alex Guillen and Andrew Restuccia. “Trump eyes climate skeptic for key White House environmental post,” Politico, April 12, 2017. Archived October 13, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/iIuPG

As head of the CEQ, Hartnett White would be in charge of coordinating interagency science, climate, and environmental policy and oversee things such as the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review process and agency compliance with that law.90Steve Horn. “Trump Names Climate Denier Kathleen Hartnett White to Head White House Environmental Council,” DeSmog, October 13, 2017.

“Though CEQ oversees the NEPA process, it remains unclear how seriously Hartnett White will take the NEPA review process, for decades seen as a bedrock of U.S. environmental regulation since NEPA became law in 1970,” DeSmog’s Steve Horn reported.91Steve Horn. “Trump Names Climate Denier Kathleen Hartnett White to Head White House Environmental Council,” DeSmog, October 13, 2017.

Hartnett White will go through a U.S. Senate confirmation hearing process, where she will likely face questions regarding her history of promoting fossil fuels and denying climate change. The Environmental Working Group (EWG) released a press statement critical of Hartnett White’s appointment:92Steve Horn. “Trump Names Climate Denier Kathleen Hartnett White to Head White House Environmental Council,” DeSmog, October 13, 2017.

“At least Butch and Sundance had to put some effort into robbing banks and trains,” Ken Cook, EWG’s president, said in a press statement. “If Hartnett White joins Administrator Pruitt, polluters will stroll through the front doors of both the EPA and the White House, no questions asked, as the rampant looting of environmental and public health protection policies continues.”93For Top White House Environment Job, Trump Taps Carbon Dioxide Fan,” EWG, October 13, 2017. Archived October 13, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/CdZqE

February 24, 2017

Kathleen Hartnett White was a speaker on a discussion panel sponsored by the CO2 Coalition at the 2017 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC). Tony Heller moderated the panel, and it also featured Craig Idso of the CO2 Coalition. View video of the event at the Energy & Environment Legal Institute’s Facebook page.94LIVE from Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) When Politics Meets Climate Forecasting with Tony Heller, Kathleen Hartnett White, and Craig Idso,” Facebook post by Energy & Environment Legal Institute, February 24, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

Hartnett White describes the CO2 coalition as “very very meaningful source,” and later says that the group has inspired her and given her hope:95LIVE from Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) When Politics Meets Climate Forecasting with Tony Heller, Kathleen Hartnett White, and Craig Idso,” Facebook post by Energy & Environment Legal Institute, February 24, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

“I’m very hopeful because of organizations like the CO2 Coalition,” Hartnett White said. “The board composed of just the top of the heap of science on this issue. Brilliant. Not a B team at all, but an A-plus team. So, I think in a way, the long debate that we were told was settled — was unequivocally settled, incontrovertible settled […] Look, I think that debate, that crazy debate, deluded denial of that debate, I would say it’s over. But there’s a crack in the door.”96LIVE from Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) When Politics Meets Climate Forecasting with Tony Heller, Kathleen Hartnett White, and Craig Idso,” Facebook post by Energy & Environment Legal Institute, February 24, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

According to Hartnett White, “Carbon Dioxide is not a pollutant, nor are fossil fuels the agent of death.” She later describes it as “an invisible trace gas that has no impact on human health even at very high levels.”97LIVE from Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) When Politics Meets Climate Forecasting with Tony Heller, Kathleen Hartnett White, and Craig Idso,” Facebook post by Energy & Environment Legal Institute, February 24, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

“I like to say that CO2 or fossil fuels, they originated—certainly fossil fuels—originate in life, and they’re really the compressed and heated concentration of life, and they come back to amplify human life,” she said.98LIVE from Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) When Politics Meets Climate Forecasting with Tony Heller, Kathleen Hartnett White, and Craig Idso,” Facebook post by Energy & Environment Legal Institute, February 24, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

She later describes climate change policies as a “civilizational threat,” and claims that “All the climate policies to date are futile.”99LIVE from Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) When Politics Meets Climate Forecasting with Tony Heller, Kathleen Hartnett White, and Craig Idso,” Facebook post by Energy & Environment Legal Institute, February 24, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

“President Obama and his lieutenants repeatedly said that the greatest global civilizational threat is the threat of man-made global warming, in his views caused by fossil fuels” she said.
“I submit that climate policies, not fossil fuels nor CO2 is actually a civilizational threat. That’s what the book [Fueling Freedom] has kind of been about.”100LIVE from Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) When Politics Meets Climate Forecasting with Tony Heller, Kathleen Hartnett White, and Craig Idso,” Facebook post by Energy & Environment Legal Institute, February 24, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

Hartnett White concludes that she hopes President Trump will usher in new policy:101LIVE from Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) When Politics Meets Climate Forecasting with Tony Heller, Kathleen Hartnett White, and Craig Idso,” Facebook post by Energy & Environment Legal Institute, February 24, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

“It’s hard to imagine how all this could shift, given the extent to which, not only in regulation, but just diffused throughout culture, assumptions that carbon dioxide is inherently harmful. Just hard to imagine how that can happen. I so hope—and this is the only opportunity I’ve seen in 20 years—a real redirection. […] There’s become this gap where the planet itself has some value higher than human life on this. And that means, really, some pretty simple things about policies at issue here and policies championed very consistently by President Trump and his campaign. Employment has got to be a key factor on any cost-benefit analysis.”102LIVE from Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) When Politics Meets Climate Forecasting with Tony Heller, Kathleen Hartnett White, and Craig Idso,” Facebook post by Energy & Environment Legal Institute, February 24, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

In the Q&A Session following her discussion, Hartnett White discussed the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and how its focus on CO2 emissions has been a supposed “distraction” from more important issues. The EPA has “lost their sense of real priorities,” she said.103LIVE from Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) When Politics Meets Climate Forecasting with Tony Heller, Kathleen Hartnett White, and Craig Idso,” Facebook post by Energy & Environment Legal Institute, February 24, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

She continues on the EPA, saying their risk assessment on CO2 was based on “heinously bad science.” “Even the American Academy of Sciences and their review panel have mocked EPA,” she adds “They’re not a little bit bad. They’re really bad. And they do nothing but serve to justify often truly infeasible standards, you know.”104LIVE from Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) When Politics Meets Climate Forecasting with Tony Heller, Kathleen Hartnett White, and Craig Idso,” Facebook post by Energy & Environment Legal Institute, February 24, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

In her closing remarks, Hartnett said:105LIVE from Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) When Politics Meets Climate Forecasting with Tony Heller, Kathleen Hartnett White, and Craig Idso,” Facebook post by Energy & Environment Legal Institute, February 24, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

“I think the department of energy could take very strategic steps on a lot of the things we’ve been talking about if the decision makers are willing to make some 180-degree turns.”106LIVE from Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) When Politics Meets Climate Forecasting with Tony Heller, Kathleen Hartnett White, and Craig Idso,” Facebook post by Energy & Environment Legal Institute, February 24, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

December 8, 2016

Kathleen Hartnett White spoke at, “At the Crossroads III: Energy and Climate Policy Summit,” an event co-hosted by the Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF) and the Heritage Foundation. At the Crossroads describes itself as “the premier energy-and-climate policy event in America,” and, as before, promises to attract a range of prominent climate change deniers.107At the Crossroads III: Energy and Climate Policy Summit,The Heritage Foundation. Archived November 24, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/KTgct

The event description invites attendees to “Join national policymakers, leading energy experts, and the field’s most innovative minds to explore what’s next in energy policy, what’s coming in climate science, and how you may affect both.”108At the Crossroads III: Energy and Climate Policy Summit,The Heritage Foundation. Archived November 24, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/KTgct

The agenda lists the following speakers:109At the Crossroads III: Energy and Climate Policy Summit,The Heritage Foundation. Archived November 24, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/KTgct

Doug Domenech, director of the Texas Public Policy Foundation’s “Fueling Freedom” project, wrote about the proceedings at The Hill. Domenech outlined the common climate change denial message shared among the speakers: “Is climate change real? Yes, it has happened in the past and will happen in the future. Is man making an impact on the climate? Perhaps but in very small ways. But the overarching consensus remains the climate change we are experiencing is by no means catastrophic.”110Doug Domenech. “Climate change: Speaking truth to power,The Hill, December 13, 2016. Archived December 21, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/zAEH5

October 22, 2016

Speaking at a Fueling Freedom event with fellow speaker Stephen Moore, Kathleen Hartnett White emphasized coal as a preferred fuel source over other sources:111Stewart Doreen. “Fueling Freedom speakers: There needs to be a fight over future energy sources,” MRT, October 22, 2016. Archived November 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/OLZqi

“You can’t compete with heat value and density of coal, natural gas and petroleum.”112Stewart Doreen. “Fueling Freedom speakers: There needs to be a fight over future energy sources,” MRT, October 22, 2016. Archived November 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/OLZqi

Moore and Hartnett White provided a list of reasons to combat the idea of using green energy sources like wind and solar as the sole means of power, emphasizing the supposed unreliability of such sources.113Stewart Doreen. “Fueling Freedom speakers: There needs to be a fight over future energy sources,” MRT, October 22, 2016. Archived November 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/OLZqi

According to Hartnett White, “Germany is five to 10 years ahead of the United States (when it comes to renewables),” Hartnett White said. “It is the most aggressive country on renewables, and their energy bill is three times the rate in the U.S. – not 30 percent, three times.”114Stewart Doreen. “Fueling Freedom speakers: There needs to be a fight over future energy sources,” MRT, October 22, 2016. Archived November 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/OLZqi

They also said that pushing developing countries to use renewables is like keeping them in a “16th century energy mindset.”115Stewart Doreen. “Fueling Freedom speakers: There needs to be a fight over future energy sources,” MRT, October 22, 2016. Archived November 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/OLZqi

October 7, 2016

In an interview with the Orlando Sentinel, Kathleen Hartnett White discussed her views on the EPA, Clean Power Plan, and renewable energy.116A defense of fossil fuel: Renewable energy doesn’t hold a candle to it,” Orlando Sentinel, October 7, 2016. Arhchive.is URL: https://archive.is/XyPVG

“An invisible, harmless trace gas in the Earth’s atmosphere, CO2 is a plant food” Hartnett White said. “In the long geological/ climatological history of the Earth, there were long periods when atmospheric levels of CO2 were hundreds of times higher than the current level of around 400 parts per mission. For context, consider that man-made emissions of CO2 now account for 0.02 percent of all atmospheric gases. Slightly higher levels of human induced CO2 have increased plant productivity especially in arid regions as shown by satellite imagery. Greenhouses inject CO2 to reach levels over 1000 ppm to increase plant growth.”117A defense of fossil fuel: Renewable energy doesn’t hold a candle to it,” Orlando Sentinel, October 7, 2016. Arhchive.is URL: https://archive.is/XyPVG

“Even the EPA recognizes that carbon cuts mandated by the rule would reduce the rate of warming predicted by the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change by only 0.02 percent — an amount so miniscule it is immeasurable.”118A defense of fossil fuel: Renewable energy doesn’t hold a candle to it,” Orlando Sentinel, October 7, 2016. Arhchive.is URL: https://archive.is/XyPVG

“Even without an aggressive climate plan, the U.S. is reducing CO2 more than any other country.”119A defense of fossil fuel: Renewable energy doesn’t hold a candle to it,” Orlando Sentinel, October 7, 2016. Arhchive.is URL: https://archive.is/XyPVG

“There is nothing inviolable about fossil fuels. Who knows what alternative sources innovative human minds will develop that can benefit humanity as much or more than oil, natural gas and coal. Right now however, there are no alternatives capable of providing the benefits of fossil fuels.”120A defense of fossil fuel: Renewable energy doesn’t hold a candle to it,” Orlando Sentinel, October 7, 2016. Arhchive.is URL: https://archive.is/XyPVG

September 27, 2016

In an interview with CNBC, Hartnett White defended Donald Trump’s temperament as “humanizing and they [supporters] can actually identify with his style much more than they can with the very, very scripted approach Mrs. Clinton has.”121Trump aide: Trump’s temperament ‘humanizing,’ Clinton’s ‘very, very scripted’,” CNBC, September 27, 2016. Archived November 13, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/6LtnO

September 23, 2016

Kathleen Hartnett White told S&P Global Intelligence her recommendations for the EPA, which included that many rules would be cut:122Andrew Topf. “If Trump wins, he’ll scrap Clean Power Plan and go after EPA,” Mining.com, September 23, 2016. Archived November 13, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/tSWfG

“A basic recommendation I would make to anyone running for president is we need to review this avalanche of rules that has been promulgated over the last eight years and possibly rescind […] and replace [them] with new rules. […] Again this doesn’t mean we don’t need EPAEPA],” she said. 123Andrew Topf. “If Trump wins, he’ll scrap Clean Power Plan and go after EPA,” Mining.com, September 23, 2016. Archived November 13, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/tSWfG

According to S&P Global Intelligence, during the interview Hartnett White “attacked the EPA’s 2009 finding that carbon dioxide emissions pose a threat to public health and welfare,” which had been a prompt for the EPA’s formation of the Clean Power Plan. Hartnett White claimed that the EPA overstretched its mandate:124Andrew Topf. “If Trump wins, he’ll scrap Clean Power Plan and go after EPA,” Mining.com, September 23, 2016. Archived November 13, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/tSWfG

“Policies of that magnitude to me must be a decision of the U.S. Congress or we don’t really function like a democracy anymore, if we have agencies that through very strained interpretation of existing law can impose such bold measures,” she said.125Andrew Topf. “If Trump wins, he’ll scrap Clean Power Plan and go after EPA,” Mining.com, September 23, 2016. Archived November 13, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/tSWfG

August 9, 2016

Quoted in the far-right news source Breitbart, Kathleen Hartnett White praised Donald Trump’s economic plan, focusing on his plans to reduce regulation on the energy industry.126Alex Swoyer. “Energy Expert Praises Trump’s Economic Plan: ‘Surest Path to Job Creation’,” Breitbart, August 9, 2016. Archived November 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/mxSlQ

“The manner in which energy is developed and unitized, in just endless different ways in our economy, can provide an extraordinary stimulus to economic growth,” said Hartnett White. “The surest path to job creation in my judgment is through taking advantage of the energy.”127Alex Swoyer. “Energy Expert Praises Trump’s Economic Plan: ‘Surest Path to Job Creation’,” Breitbart, August 9, 2016. Archived November 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/mxSlQ

Hartnett White also promoted the Keystone XL pipeline, declaring that “the very fact of the access we now have to worlds of oil and natural gas in this country and also in Canada, but we lack really the key infrastructure to take the maximum effiencent [sic] use of it because we don’t have pipelines in certain places, the Keystone Pipeline is as important to North Dakota and those states — Pennsylvania — all of those as it is to Canada.”128Alex Swoyer. “Energy Expert Praises Trump’s Economic Plan: ‘Surest Path to Job Creation’,” Breitbart, August 9, 2016. Archived November 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/mxSlQ

She went on to praise Trump’s proposal to rescind the Climate Action Plan, the Waters of the United States Rule, and cancellation of the Paris Climate Agreement while denouncing President Obama’s policies, saying that Obama’s regulatory authority had been “proliferating.”129Alex Swoyer. “Energy Expert Praises Trump’s Economic Plan: ‘Surest Path to Job Creation’,” Breitbart, August 9, 2016. Archived November 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/mxSlQ

June 17, 2016

Kathleen Hartnett White wrote an article in The Hill calling for restraint of the “imperial EPA.” White promotes bill H.R. 3880, “The Stopping the EPA Overreach Act.” The bill would prevent the EPA from regulating carbon dioxide, methane and three other greenhouse gases. According to White, the EPA’s treatment of carbon dioxide as a pollutant is an example of “regulatory overreach.”130Kathleen Hartnett White. “Restrain the imperial EPA,” The Hill, June 17, 2016. Archived July 4, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/gjgJh

“The truth is that our bodies, blood and bones are built of carbon! Carbon dioxide is a necessary nutrient for plant life, acting as the catalyst for the most essential energy conversion process on planet earth: photosynthesis,” she writes. “[…] How do our national leaders square their public vilification of carbon dioxide with fundamental scientific and economic realities? Such political propaganda has now educated at least two generations of Americans who think carbon is a killer instead of the stuff of life on the earth.” 131Kathleen Hartnett White. “Restrain the imperial EPA,” The Hill, June 17, 2016. Archived July 4, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/gjgJh

June 6, 2016

On June 6, 2016, the authors spoke at an event co-hosted by the Texas Public Policy Foundation and the Heritage Foundation to discuss the release of their new book.132Fueling Freedom: Exposing the Mad War on Energy,” The Heritage Foundation, June 6, 2016. Archived November 14, 2016. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/FyYGu

Also in June, Kathleeen Hartnett White spoke on The Energymakers show to discuss Fueling Freedom, where she declared:133EPISODE 245: KATHLEEN HARTNETT WHITE,” The Energy Makers Show. Archived November 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/fFpvp

“The core of the science of the IPCC is based on a set of assumptions about how the natural climate system responds to what is really, in terms of a percentage of atmospheric gas, tiny. […] There is a growing gap between observed (measured) temperature, and the predictions of the IPCC.”134EPISODE 245: KATHLEEN HARTNETT WHITE,” The Energy Makers Show. Archived November 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/fFpvp

“Extreme weather events are currently no more extreme or no more frequent than recently. Those two core claims: that the temperatures would increase at a certain rate […] and that this will create weather havoc, if you will, have not occurred.”135EPISODE 245: KATHLEEN HARTNETT WHITE,” The Energy Makers Show. Archived November 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/fFpvp

May 26, 2016

Kathleen Hartnett White, director of the Armstrong Center for Energy & the Environment at the TPPF, went on the One America News Network’s Tipping Point to discuss Hillary Clinton’s energy policies.136Kathleen Hartnett White on Tipping Point with Liz Wheeler,” YouTube video uploaded by Javelin DC, May 26, 2016. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

“A significant part of [Hillary’s] party is at a predominately extreme position on energy,” Hartnett White said.137Kathleen Hartnett White on Tipping Point with Liz Wheeler,” YouTube video uploaded by Javelin DC, May 26, 2016. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.

May 23, 2016

Kathleen Hartnett White is the co-author, with Stephen Moore, of Fueling Freedom: Exposing the Mad War on Energy. The Amazon description of the book reads as follows:138Fueling Freedom: Exposing the Mad War on Energy Hardcover – May 23 2016,” Amazon.ca. Archived July 4, 2016. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

“Fossil fuel energy is the lifeblood of the modern world. Before the Industrial Revolution, humanity depended on burning wood and candle wax. But with the ability to harness the energy in oil and other fossil fuels, quality of life and capacity for progress increased exponentially. Thanks to incredible innovations in the energy industry, fossil fuels are as promising, safe, and clean an energy resource as has ever existed in history. Yet, highly politicized climate policies are pushing a grand-scale shift to unreliable, impractical, incredibly expensive, and far less efficient energy sources. Today, ‘fossil fuel’ has become such a dirty word that even fossil fuel companies feel compelled to apologize for their products. In Fueling Freedom, energy experts Stephen Moore and Kathleen Hartnett White make an unapologetic case for fossil fuels, turning around progressives’ protestations to prove that if fossil fuel energy is supplanted by ‘green’ alternatives for political reasons, humanity will take a giant step backwards and the planet will be less safe, less clean, and less free.”139Fueling Freedom: Exposing the Mad War on Energy Hardcover – May 23 2016,” Amazon.ca. Archived July 4, 2016. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

The Heartland Institute, which hosted Stephen Moore for a talk on his book, describes how the authors “argue that if fossil fuel energy is supplanted by ‘green’ alternatives for political reasons, humanity will take a giant step backwards and the planet will be less safe, less clean, and less free.”140Nancy Thorner. “Stephen Moore Exposes the Mad War on Energy,” The Heartland Institute, July 1, 2016. Archived July 4, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/z7PWs

Hartnett White and Moore were quoted in The Patriot Post, where they had described in their book that renewable energy is “inconsequential”:

“Green energy remains an inconsequential source of energy in America despite more than $80 billion in direct federal taxpayer subsidies under Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama.”141Ken Blackwell. “Green Energy Policies May Haunt Democrats This Fall,” The Patriot Post, July 2, 2016. Archived July 4, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/PE2Mk

Rolling Stone describes the book, noting that the authors deride “weak and parasitic renewable energy,” mock the “green job craze,” electric cars, and biofuels. Global warming is dismissed meanwhile as “exaggerated nonsense […] a creed, a faith, a dogma that has little to do with science.”142Antonia Juhasz. “President Trump’s Energy Policy Would Be a Nightmare,” Rolling Stone, September 29, 2016. Archived November 28, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/c68oe

According to the book, green-energy policies that “undermine human progress” and “are not really clean at all,” we should fear people who want us to “build windmills and ride our bicycles to work.”143Antonia Juhasz. “President Trump’s Energy Policy Would Be a Nightmare,” Rolling Stone, September 29, 2016. Archived November 28, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/c68oe

From Fueling Freedom, which Hartnett White co-wrote with Stephen Moore:144Fueling Freedom: Exposing the Mad War on Energy Hardcover – May 23 2016,” Amazon.ca. Archived July 4, 2016. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

“Contrary to false reports in the media, virtually no documented environmental problems have been associated with fracking – ever.”145Fueling Freedom: Exposing the Mad War on Energy Hardcover – May 23 2016,” Amazon.ca. Archived July 4, 2016. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

April 22, 2016

Writing in The Federalist, in an article titled “Signing The Paris Agreement Is The Worst Way To Celebrate Earth Day,” Hartnett White said:146Kathleen Hartnett White. “Signing The Paris Agreement Is The Worst Way To Celebrate Earth Day,” The Federalist, April 22, 2016. Archived November 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/E5ENy

“What will be labeled a global triumph will in reality likely be, if actually implemented, a tragedy for rich and poor countries alike and especially for the poor wherever they reside. The Paris agreement represents the first energy regression in mankind’s history. It’s a regression imposed by the ruling elites of the world’s most prosperous and educated countries, abetted by legions of UN functionaries and their kin in non-governmental organizations (NGOs).”147Kathleen Hartnett White. “Signing The Paris Agreement Is The Worst Way To Celebrate Earth Day,” The Federalist, April 22, 2016. Archived November 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/E5ENy

Hartnett White claims that global warming is last on a list of “a dozen genuine public priorities,” and that the signing of the Paris agreement would signal “a return to pre-industrial days.” She adds that the idea that renewable energy could replace fossil fuels is a “grand delusion of climate policy”.148Kathleen Hartnett White. “Signing The Paris Agreement Is The Worst Way To Celebrate Earth Day,” The Federalist, April 22, 2016. Archived November 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/E5ENy

April 21, 2016

Kathleen Hartnett White gave a talk at the April Luncheon of the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE), Fort Worth Section. Her talk was titled “The Great Energy Enrichment.”149April Luncheon – Kathleen Hartnett White, ‘The Great Energy Enrichment’,SPE International Fort Worth Section. Archived July 4, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/887r3

March 3, 2016

“[M’ounting evidence invalidates the modeled predictions of the IPCC — the official scientific anchor of the crusade. For decades, the IPCC models have failed to accurately forecast temperature as observed by the most sophisticated technology: NASA’s remote sensing satellites and balloons.”150Kathleen Hartnett White. “Is the Climate Crusade Stalling?National Review, March 3, 2016. Archived July 4, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/zfqcu

“Like it or not, prosperous countries are utterly dependent on the abundant, affordable, versatile, reliable, concentrated, controllable, and portable energy available from fossil fuels. At this point in time, the intermittent, and far more expensive, renewable energies cannot provide the countless energy services on which our long, healthy, affluent, and comfortable lives with personal freedom depend.”151Kathleen Hartnett White. “Is the Climate Crusade Stalling?National Review, March 3, 2016. Archived July 4, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/zfqcu

November 19, 2015

Kathleen Hartnett White was a keynote speaker at the Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF)-sponsored event, “At The Crossroads” climate conference. She presented in Session II, in a talk titled “Not a Pollutant: CO2 is the Gas of Life.” Video below.152At the Crossroads, Session II: Not a Pollutant: CO2 is The Gas of Life,” YouTube video uploaded by user Texas Public Policy Foundation, November 19, 2015.

November 18, 2015

Shortly before the U.N. Climate Change Conference in Paris (COP21) Kathleen Hartnett White was interviewed by The Daily Signal where she “outlines important climate questions.” According to Hartnett White, there hasn’t been significant global warming in 18 years:153Here’s What Will Not Be Discussed at the Upcoming U.N. Climate Conference in Paris,” The Daily Signal, November 18, 2015. Republished by the Texas Public Policy Foundation. Archived November 13, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/wRm6K

“Temperatures have not warmed as predicted by the models over the last 18 years. And extreme weather events have not been more frequent or more intense than in the 20th century.”154Here’s What Will Not Be Discussed at the Upcoming U.N. Climate Conference in Paris,” The Daily Signal, November 18, 2015. Republished by the Texas Public Policy Foundation. Archived November 13, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/wRm6K

She argues coal, natural gas, and nuclear power are superior to wind and solar, claiming they have a smaller “physical footprint” and that the EPA’s Clean Power Plan would “disfigure millions of acres of open space” with wind turbines.155Here’s What Will Not Be Discussed at the Upcoming U.N. Climate Conference in Paris,” The Daily Signal, November 18, 2015. Republished by the Texas Public Policy Foundation. Archived November 13, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/wRm6K

“The kind of energy available in fossil fuels – abundant, affordable, concentrated, versatile, reliable, controllable, storable – was and remains a necessary condition of monumental improvements in human welfare and economic growth that emerged around 1800,” she said. “Policies to supplant fossil fuels – without a fully comparable substitute proven at scale – are immoral.”156Here’s What Will Not Be Discussed at the Upcoming U.N. Climate Conference in Paris,” The Daily Signal, November 18, 2015. Republished by the Texas Public Policy Foundation. Archived November 13, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/wRm6K

With reference to the UN COP21 climate conference, she writes that “We don’t need to supplant fossil fuels at this point in time. We need to help developing countries increase energy availability for their people and use emission control technologies to manage real pollutants.” She concludes that the U.S. Congress should recognize that “CO2 is not a pollutant within the regulatory jurisdiction of the Clean Air Act.”157Here’s What Will Not Be Discussed at the Upcoming U.N. Climate Conference in Paris,” The Daily Signal, November 18, 2015. Republished by the Texas Public Policy Foundation. Archived November 13, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/wRm6K

Responding to the question “What are some ideas missing in the global warming policy conversation?” Hartnett White says:158Here’s What Will Not Be Discussed at the Upcoming U.N. Climate Conference in Paris,” The Daily Signal, November 18, 2015. Republished by the Texas Public Policy Foundation. Archived November 13, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/wRm6K

“The official science driving global warming alarmism is based on models built to assume that natural climate variables are extremely sensitive to a relatively small increase in atmospheric CO2 from human activity. But facts on the ground contradict the climate models’ assumption,” She adds that Temperatures have not warmed as predicted by the models over the last 18 years. And extreme weather events have not been more frequent or more intense than in the 20th century.”159Here’s What Will Not Be Discussed at the Upcoming U.N. Climate Conference in Paris,” The Daily Signal, November 18, 2015. Republished by the Texas Public Policy Foundation. Archived November 13, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/wRm6K

September 29, 2015

Kathleen Hartnett White writes in Townhall that Pope Francis’s visit to America “is a reminder of the extent to which pure propaganda now circumscribes public discourse about climate change.”160Kathleen Hartnett White. “Clearing the Air on Climate Change,” Townhall, September 29, 2015. Archived July 4, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/tsqtp

“The climate issue, in all its many dimensions, is not about air pollution as Pope Francis’s recent speeches labeled the issue and as the media parroted his words. The climate change issue is about energy derived from fossil fuels,” White writes.

June 11, 2015

Kathleen Hartnett White was a speaker at the Heartland Institute‘s Tenth International Conference on Climate Change in Washington, DC where she discussed “ the economic impacts of federal climate policy” on a panel titled “Energy Realities.” Video below:161TPPF’s Kathleen Hartnett White to Participate in International Conference on Climate Change,” Texas Public Policy Foundation, June 11, 2015. Archived July 4, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/2Aqjx

November 30, 2014

With Stephen Moore, Kathleen Hartnett White co-wrote an article in the Washington Times titled “EPA’s goofy green-energy rules.” Together, the authors argue against the EPA’s Clean Power Plan:162EPA’s goofy green-energy rules,” The Washington Times, November 30, 2014. Archived November 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/48qBN

“The EPA’s proposed Clean Power Plan regulations are the most expansive and economically disruptive rules in four decades from an agency that is notorious for its reckless disregard for the financial consequences of regulation under the Clean Air Act, ” Moore and Hartnett White write. “As an act of total desperation, the EPA is now playing the race card. The agency is adopting the theme that shutting down coal plants and other fossil fuel development is necessary to secure ‘climate justice for communities of color.’ Ms. McCarthy pitched this gibberish in August: ‘Carbon pollution standards are an issue of justice. If we want to protect communities of color, we need to protect them from climate change.’ This is just short of derangement.”163EPA’s goofy green-energy rules,” The Washington Times, November 30, 2014. Archived November 14, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/48qBN

September 25–26, 2014

Kathleen Hartnett White spoke at the Texas-Public-Policy-Foundation-hosted ”At the Crossroads: Energy & Climate Policy Summit.” According to the event description, Sessions will explore the latest in climate science; current federal regulations and litigation; the history, politics, and economics behind man-made global warming; energy alternatives to fossil fuels; and how energy factors into prosperity and poverty.164(Press Release). “Tomorrow: TPPF Hosts ‘At the Crossroads: Energy & Climate Policy Summit’ Featuring Gov. Rick Perry and Sen. Dan Patrick,” Texas Public Policy Foundation, September 24, 2014. Archived July 4, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/sEGLX

Speakers included:165(Press Release). “Tomorrow: TPPF Hosts ‘At the Crossroads: Energy & Climate Policy Summit’ Featuring Gov. Rick Perry and Sen. Dan Patrick,” Texas Public Policy Foundation, September 24, 2014. Archived July 4, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/sEGLX

June 2014

Kathleen Hartnett White authored a study at the Texas Public Policy Foundation titled “Fossil Fuels: The Moral Case.”166Kathleen Hartnett White. “Fossil Fuels: The Moral Case” (PDF), Texas Public Policy Foundation, June 2014. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

White says that her research was inspired by a “comprehensively researched monograph” written by fellow climate change denier Indur Goklany titled “Humanity Unbound.”167Kathleen Hartnett White. “Fossil Fuels: The Moral Case” (PDF), Texas Public Policy Foundation, June 2014. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

White describes the thesis of her paper as that “fossil fuels, as a necessary condition of the Industrial Revolution, made modern living standards possible and vastly improved living conditions across the world.”168Kathleen Hartnett White. “Fossil Fuels: The Moral Case” (PDF), Texas Public Policy Foundation, June 2014. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

”[…] the greatest beneficiaries of this energy revolution known as the Industrial Revolution were average workers and the most impoverished. Increasing emission of man-made CO2 is tightly correlated with this monumental achievement.”169Kathleen Hartnett White. “Fossil Fuels: The Moral Case” (PDF), Texas Public Policy Foundation, June 2014. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

According to White, ”[fossil ]fuels are superior on many levels to the current alternatives.” With reference to climate change, she claims that evidence for dangerous climate change “weakens” over time.170Kathleen Hartnett White. “Fossil Fuels: The Moral Case” (PDF), Texas Public Policy Foundation, June 2014. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

“Mandates to force an abrupt energy transition from fossil fuels to renewable sources are naïve and fraught with peril for highly industrialized economies. As this paper detailed, energy sources are not necessarily interchangeable. In energy density, abundance, reliability, versatility, and other advantages, fossil fuels are far superior to wind, solar, and biomass. […]”

“IPCC science claims of 95 percent certainty that human activity is causing climate calamity are more like the dogmatic claims of ideologues and clerics than scientific conclusions. “ she writes.171Kathleen Hartnett White. “Fossil Fuels: The Moral Case” (PDF), Texas Public Policy Foundation, June 2014. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Hartnett White spoke about the study at an event hosted by the Heritage Foundation. See video below:

May 30, 2014

Kathleen Hartnett White is the author of an open letter to John Hennessy, President of Stanford University where she criticizes the university’s divestment from coal. “I regret that the Board has endorsed a highly politicized, dogmatic point of view that is not in the interest of maximizing returns on the endowment investments, the abject needs of billions of people across the world or, indeed, the environment,” Hartnett White wrote. “Stanford’s decision to divest in coal is a symbol for the elite that regrettably reflects indifference to the poor across the world who has never seen a light switch.172An Open Letter to President Hennessy,” Texas Public Policy Foundation, May 30, 2014. Archived November 28, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/ug5VU

March 14, 2008

Kathleen Hartnett White published an article in the opinion pages ofThe Hays Daily News (PDF) where she claims that she made the decision to approve the first coal-fired power plant in Texas in 20 years. “[E]quipped with groundbreaking emission controls [the new plant], was a net environmental benefit for Texas,” Hartnett White said, as reported at Desmog.173Kathleen White. “Holcom holds environmental promise” (PDF), The Hays Daily News. Retrieved from Newspapers.com. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. 174Kevin Grandia. “Texas Pollution Apologist Weighs in on Kansas Coal Fight,” Desmog, March 13, 2008.

“Lost in the outcry over carbon dioxide are these considerations,” Hartnett White added. “CO2 represents only 5 percent of global greenhouse gas. CO2 added by human activity such as power plants constitutes only 3.4 percent of all CO2.

“As predicted by the reigning science of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the risk of global warming from human-induced greenhouse gases such as CO2 is an uncertain, remote, gradual risk with impacts predicted in 100 years or more.”175Kevin Grandia. “Texas Pollution Apologist Weighs in on Kansas Coal Fight,” Desmog, March 13, 2008.

The Wichita Eagle‘s Editorial blog responded, noting that “She [Harntett White] also makes misleading, unsupported assertions on science, claiming that the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change portrays global warming as an ‘uncertain, remote, gradual risk with impacts predicted in 100 years or more.’ To the contrary, the panel’s study is unequivocal on the high risks of warming, the environmental damage already under way, and the urgency of controlling carbon and greenhouse gases now.”176Kevin Grandia. “Texas Pollution Apologist Weighs in on Kansas Coal Fight,” Desmog, March 13, 2008.

2004–2007

The Dallas Morning News wrote an editorial discussing Hartnett White’s departure as chairman of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality:177Clean Air Awaits: Gov. Perry should seize this chance to reshape TCEQ,” The Dallas Morning News, July 23, 2007. Archived August 27, 2007. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/LinZJ

“She [Hartnett White] has been an apologist for polluters, consistently siding with business interests instead of protecting public health. Ms. White worked to set a low bar as she lobbied for lax ozone standards and pushed through an inadequate anti-pollution plan. She also voted to approve TXU’s pollution-intensive Oak Grove coal units, ignoring evidence that emissions from the lignite plant could thwart North Texas’ efforts to meet air quality standards,” the editorial reads.178Clean Air Awaits: Gov. Perry should seize this chance to reshape TCEQ,” The Dallas Morning News, July 23, 2007. Archived August 27, 2007. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/LinZJ

Environmental groups had put up a billboard and website pushing for Hartnett White to be removed from the position. White said that her exit, which came when her term expires, had always been planned.179Clean Air Awaits: Gov. Perry should seize this chance to reshape TCEQ,” The Dallas Morning News, July 23, 2007. Archived August 27, 2007. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/LinZJ

During her time at TCEQ, where she had been appointed by Rick Perry, Hartnett White approved a new coal plant despite widespread opposition. When judges reviewed the plant’s air permit and concluded controls would be insufficient, Hartnett White said the owner of the plant was “under no obligation to prove its pollution controls would work.”180Texas Environmentalists: Kathleen Hartnett White Would be ‘Disaster’ as EPA Chief,” Texas Observer, November 30, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/adi1g

A 2003 Texas State Audit found that the TCEQ did “not consistently ensure violators are held accountable” and polluters “often have economic benefits that exceed their penalties, which could reduce their incentive to comply.”181“An Audit Report on The Commission on Environmental Quality’s Enforcement and Permitting Functions for Selected Programs” (PDF), State Auditor’s Office, December 2003.

According to a set of emails released in 2011, TCEQ under Hartnett White had also directed staff to lower radiation test results, in defiance of federal EPA rules.182Texas politicians knew agency hid the amount of radiation in drinking water,” KHOU 11 News, May 19, 2011. Archived May 28, 2014. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/EqISh

The TCEQ maintained the practice of subtracting off each test’s margin of error, making the resulting radiation levels appear lower than they actually were, while the EPA had said as early as 2000 that states should not subtract this margin of error. The emails show that by October, 2007, TCEQ staff began questioning the senior directors about whether it was appropriate to defy this federal regulation.183Texas politicians knew agency hid the amount of radiation in drinking water,” KHOU 11 News, May 19, 2011. Archived May 28, 2014. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/EqISh

The TCEQ drinking water team lead was told, “I believe there may been some EPA guidance on not subtracting, but can’t remember back that far for sure. This has been the practice in Texas since day one of radionuclide monitoring. This option was thoroughly discussed with the commissioners and the (executive director) staff when the reg was being adopted. We were directed to maintain the current methodology for subtracting the counting error at that time.”184Texas politicians knew agency hid the amount of radiation in drinking water,” KHOU 11 News, May 19, 2011. Archived May 28, 2014. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/EqISh

The same team leader had presented testimony on behalf of TCEQ that showed TCEQ was aware of the federal rule, noting that the federal agency had “issued guidance for calculating radionuclide levels for compliance.” Kathleen Hartnett White was present at a discussion of the TCEQ testimony in a June 7, 2004 meeting with the Texas Water Advisory Council, minutes from the meeting showed.185Texas politicians knew agency hid the amount of radiation in drinking water,” KHOU 11 News, May 19, 2011. Archived May 28, 2014. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/EqISh

Kathleen Hartnett White, who also sat on the Texas Water Advisory Council at the time, told KHOU news that the decision to continue the subtraction was a good one:186Texas politicians knew agency hid the amount of radiation in drinking water,” KHOU 11 News, May 19, 2011. Archived May 28, 2014. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/EqISh

“As memory serves me, that made incredibly good sense,” she said.187Texas politicians knew agency hid the amount of radiation in drinking water,” KHOU 11 News, May 19, 2011. Archived May 28, 2014. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/EqISh

December 2003

A 2003 state auditor report (PDF) found that the Texas Environmental Quality Commission (TEQC) under Hartnett White consistently failed to hold violators accountable for breaking its laws, applied fines that amounted to only about 40 percent of the profits the companies made breaking the law, and introduced policies that weakened its own regulations.188“An Audit Report on The Commission on Environmental Quality’s Enforcement and Permitting Functions for Selected Programs” (PDF), State Auditor’s Office, December 2003 (Report No. 04-016). Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Hartnett White “was put in that position by the governor for that very reason,” Luke Metzger, director of the non-profit Environment Texas told Rolling Stone. “Gov. Perry had received hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from these very businesses who had an incentive to make sure there was as weak a regulatory structure in place as possible. She definitely filled that role to a tee.”189Antonia Juhasz. “President Trump’s Energy Policy Would Be a Nightmare,” Rolling Stone, September 29, 2016. Archived November 28, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/c68oe

Affiliations

Other Affiliations

Social Media

While Kathleet Hartnett White does not appear to have a personal social media account, the Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF) maintains several accounts that make mention of her work:

Publications

A search of Google Scholar for articles by Kathleen Hartnett White does not return any publications authored in peer-reviewed journals. However, the search does return a number of policy documents written by Kathleen Harntett-White and largely published by the Texas Public Policy Foundation. For example:208Google Scholar Search for author “Kathleen Hartnett White” OR “Kathleen Hartnett White.” Performed February 10, 2017. Archived. pdf on file at DeSmog.

Other Publications

A TPPF “Media Expert” backgrounder on Kathleen Hartnett White lists Hartnett White as making regular media appearancesin the National Review (print and online), Investors’ Business Daily the Washington Examiner, Daily Caller, Forbes, Houston Chronicle, and Dallas Morning News. Some sample articles below.210“Media Expert: Kathleen Hartnett White” (PDF), Texas Public Policy Foundation. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.

Other Resources

Resources