Biden Energy Secretary Rakes in $1.6M after Selling Electric Bus Company Stock
Joe Biden previously pushed electric bus company
© press
White House Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm has sold her stocks in an electric bus maker, which Joe Biden previously pushed.
Granholm sold her holdings in Proterra Inc., netting $1.6 million, a spokesman confirmed.
Granholm’s obligations under an ethics agreement are now fulfilled, the Energy Department said.
Spokesman Kevin Liao said in an email:
“Secretary Granholm has acted in full accordance with the comprehensive ethical standards set by the Biden administration and has completed her divestment well ahead of the time required by her ethics agreement,” spokesman Kevin Liao said in an email.
Republicans blasted Granholm’s holdings in the company, noting Biden was pushing it.
© press
Biden faced more backlash following his virtual visit to a Proterra manufacturing facility in South Carolina to highlight electric vehicle makers.
Top Republican on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso, urged the Energy Department’s inspector general to probe whether Granholm’s ownership in the company was a conflict of interest.
Republican Rep. Ralph Norman of South Carolina also pressed for details on her relationship to Proterra.
During Granholm's confirmation hearing, she pledged to recuse herself from any matters with “a direct and predictable effect on the financial interests of Proterra” until she completed the sale.
© press
Granholm claimed she had nothing to do with the planning of Biden’s online visit.
Barrasso said Thursday that Granholm “actively promoted electric vehicles and electric vehicle batteries” even as she owned stock in a prominent electric vehicle maker.
“Her actions appear to be a significant conflict of interest,” Barrasso said.
Granholm faced backlash earlier this month for claiming Americans would not be affected by the shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline if they were driving an electric car.
'We obviously are ‘all in’ on making sure that we meet the President’s goals of getting to 100 percent clean electricity by 2035 and net-zero carbon emissions by 2050."
“And, you know, if you drive an electric car, this would not be affecting you, clearly. "
