House Hearing ERUPTS as Environmental Lawyer Pushes GOP Congressman to ‘Repent’ For ‘Destroying the Earth’

A House Oversight Committee hearing went off the rails on Thursday as Rep. Clay Higgins (R-LA) and environmental lawyer Raya Salter traded bards and raised their voices during an exchange on petrochemical products.

“Everything you have, your clothes, your glasses, the car. You got her on your phone, the table you sit in the chair, the carpet under your feet. Everything you’ve got is petrochemical products. What would you do with that? Tell the world,” Higgins asked of Salter, who is the executive director of Energy Justice Law and Policy Center.

“If I had that power in the world. What? Actually, I don’t need that power. Because what I would do is ask you, sir, from Louisiana,” Salter began as Higgins cut her off.

“I’m giving you the power,” Higgins interjected.

“You, sir. You, sir, from Louisiana,” Salter continued, speaking over Higgins. “Should search your heart and understand why the EPA knows that toxic petrochemical facilities are some of the most toxic polluting facilities in the world and are killing Black people throughout Louisiana. So my wish to be with you, to search your heart and ask your God what you are doing to the black people.”

Higgins spoke in the background, saying, “My good lady I am trying to give you the power, so what would you do?”

Later in the exchange, Higgins also tried to work in the religious language.

“Like from a biblical perspective, we were given, we were given the Lord gave us dominion over the planet and the creatures thereof. Now, the original translations of ‘dominion’ means to care for and nurture. So from a biblical perspective, I am an environmentalist. I love my planet and the people and the creatures thereof. Do you?” Higgins asked Salter.

“Sir. If we’re going to talk about, if we’re going to talk about the Lord. I ask that you search your heart again and think about repenting,” Salter replied as Higgins spoke as well.

“The fossil fuel industry that owns your state is destroying the earth and the natural world. And that is a fact, sir,” Salter concluded.

“You know what you got, young lady? You got a lot of noise, but you got no answers,” Higgins concluded.

Salter: The fossil fuel industry that owns your state is destroying the earth and the natural world pic.twitter.com/LqmJtyLka4

— Acyn (@Acyn) September 15, 2022

Higgins was later condemned by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) for his treatment of Salter. “Men who treat women like that in public, I fear how they treat them in private. We can be better than this,” Ocasio-Cortez said while apologizing to Salter and saying Higgins’s “disrespect” of Salter was the worst she had seen in “the four years” on the committee.

Rep @AOC (D-NY) goes after Rep. Clay Higgins (R-LA) for yelling at witness Raya Salter during a House Oversight hearing about the climate crisis:

“Men who treat women like that in public, I fear how they treat them in private. We can be better than this.” pic.twitter.com/tZfTKoI29p

— The Recount (@therecount) September 15, 2022

Watch the full clip above

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