Mitch Perry
In anticipation of Rex Tillerson’s confirmation hearing to be the next U.S. Secretary of State on Wednesday, NextGen Climate is airing ads in Florida and five other states this week, telling viewers to contact their senators to oppose Tillerson when his nomination comes before the entire U.S. Senate.
Tillerson is the longtime CEO of ExxonMobil who was picked by President-elect Donald Trump to head the State Dept. last month, but his close affiliation with Russian leader Vladimir Putin has been a source of controversy with some senators.
The ad, “Protect America,” comes as Trump has been criticized for dismissing intelligence reports that found Russia conducted a campaign of cyber attacks to interfere with U.S. elections, and previously suggested that he would lift sanctions against Russia.
“Donald Trump has made his values clear — instead of working to support the American people, he’s nominating corporate and Wall Street insiders,” said NextGen Climate President Tom Steyer. “Rex Tillerson has shown he puts corporate interests over American interests. The Senate must protect the public by rejecting his nomination.”
Steyer is also blasting Tillerson on the environmental front, claiming that under his leadership, ExxonMobil had “one of the worst environmental records,” and is currently under investigation for lying about the dangers of climate change.
On Monday, over 75 people protested in Tampa in front of Senator Marco Rubio’s office, calling on him to oppose Tillerson when he votes on his nomination in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
NextGen Climate Action is a Super PAC focused on giving support to environmentally active candidates.
See the ad below:
