'It's Not Altogether Your Fault...': John Kennedy Presses Pete Buttigieg About Key LNG Project

4 months ago

At today's Senate Appropriations Committee hearing, Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) questioned Transportation Sec. Pete Buttigieg about an LNG safety center.

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Transcript

00:00 Thank you, Chair Durbin. Senator Kennedy.

00:02 Mr. Secretary, I hope you'll hear the pleas from our chair

00:14 to help the people of Maui. We've been through that in Louisiana.

00:20 Frankly, I'm disappointed that the administration hasn't done more. I'm not

00:28 laying that at your feet, but the people of Maui right now need more than anything else hope.

00:34 And without a place to live, there is no hope.

00:40 How are those babies? How are your babies doing?

00:48 Thanks for asking. They have figured out how to get out of their beds, which means they now

00:53 control when we get up instead of the other way around. But they're healthy and happy.

00:58 Well, they'll be teenagers before you know it. You'll think that aliens have come down and

01:07 abducted your beautiful kids and replaced them with terrorists, but you'll get through it.

01:12 I want to ask you about, I know I sound like a broken record, the National Center of Excellence

01:24 for Liquefied Natural Gas Safety, a subject that I know you're familiar with, Mr. Secretary.

01:30 We're trying to get this built. It's frustrating, of course. It's not altogether your fault.

01:37 Some days it seems like it takes longer than medical school to get something done around here.

01:49 But I'd like to ask you where we are. Congress has spoken explicitly.

01:57 We want this project built. We've appropriated money. It's supposed to be in Louisiana.

02:03 The people of Louisiana and the universities there have gotten together.

02:09 They want to put the, as do I, they want to put the center at McNeese. Other universities will

02:15 be involved. How do we get this done? Thank you. That's certainly the path that we're on. I know

02:21 we've been engaging your staff and with your engagement of PHMSA. I believe that we are

02:28 on the path to advance. One thing I would note is that we've taken to heart your observation that

02:35 the facility that is there now at McNeese State creates an opportunity to leverage what we're

02:42 seeking to do with those taxpayer dollars that are entrusted to us. So what I can tell you is that

02:48 we have directed the GSA to provide options in Lake Charles for that LNG Center of Excellence.

02:54 Of course, we need to make sure that we follow the procurement process and we need to make sure that

02:59 there are adequate resources coming in from the center and we're working with you on that.

03:03 But certainly recognize the importance and the potential of this facility and the value that

03:10 it could bring making sure that we have the safest and most environmentally responsible

03:15 LNG processes in the world. So the LNG project is going to be placed in Louisiana, is that right?

03:21 Yes. And within Louisiana it's going to be placed in Lake Charles, is that right? That's what we've

03:27 directed GSA to do is find sites in Lake Charles that would meet the mission. And again, part of

03:34 the rationale for that, as you've noted, is that existing center, that academic center, being able

03:40 to benefit from that co-location. So pending the procurement process appropriations and all that,

03:45 that's the direction that we're headed in. And you're working with McNeese State University

03:49 and our other universities, is that correct? Yes. Okay. In the one minute I have left,

03:56 I'd like to hear your opinion on something. I'm worried about Boeing,

04:02 not just from a commercial perspective, from a national security perspective.

04:11 I'd like your thoughts on that. Well, the importance of Boeing in economic terms and

04:19 in strategic terms can't be overstated given the role that they play in American industry,

04:26 in aerospace, and in not just the regional economy, but really the U.S. economy.

04:31 I take care to focus on the safety dimension above all else. And certainly as regards the FAA's

04:40 equities here, it is and can only be strictly about safety. But I also believe that getting

04:48 the safety picture right, making sure they address their quality control issues and any

04:53 cultural issues in terms of prioritizing quality and safety, will in turn redound to the benefit

04:59 of the economic and strategic importance of a firm that large with that important of a role.

05:04 Well, we're not just competing against, we meaning Boeing, against Airbus. We're competing against

05:13 countries now, other countries. I appreciate your candor on that. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

'It's Not Altogether Your Fault...': John Kennedy Presses Pete Buttigieg About Key LNG Project

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