Senator Josh Hawley, a Republican from Missouri, has called for Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm's resignation following a contentious exchange during a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing. The hearing was held to review the Department of Energy's 2025 budget request.
Hawley criticized Granholm for violating the STOCK Act by failing to disclose $240,000 worth of stock sales within the required time frame. He also accused her of misleading the committee by owning shares of individual companies despite testifying otherwise.
During the hearing, Granholm admitted to owning shares of six unnamed individual companies and her husband owning shares in Ford Motor Co., despite her previous testimony claiming otherwise. She sold the remaining individual stock holdings after the discrepancy was discovered.
Hawley questioned Granholm's delay in reporting the transactions to the committee, to which she responded that she rectified the mistake as soon as she became aware of it.
Furthermore, Hawley criticized Granholm for allowing senior DOE officials to own stocks related to the agency's work, citing a potential conflict of interest. Granholm defended the officials, stating that they only own stocks in areas where they have no influence and that the agency's ethics office reviews relevant transactions.
The exchange between Hawley and Granholm highlighted concerns over financial transparency and potential conflicts of interest within the Department of Energy. The call for Granholm's resignation underscores the ongoing scrutiny facing government officials regarding financial disclosures and ethical standards.
