CONTENTS Johnston, Hon. J. Bennett, U.S. Senator from Louisiana Lott, Hon. Trent, U.S. Senator from Mississippi Nordhaus, Robert R., nominee to be General Counsel, Department of Energy ROBERT R. NORDHAUS NOMINATION TUESDAY, JULY 20, 1993 U.S. SENATE, COMMITTEE ON ENERGY AND NATURAL RESOURCES, Washington, DC. The committee met, pursuant to notice, at 9:36 a.m., in room SD-366, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. J. Bennett Johnston, chairman, presiding. OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. J. BENNETT JOHNSTON, U.S. SENATOR FROM LOUISIANA The CHAIRMAN. The committee will come to order. This is a hearing on President Clinton's nomination of Robert Nordhaus to be General Counsel for the Department of Energy. Without objection, the written testimony of the witness, the committee questionnaire, and financial disclosure statement furnished by the nominee will be submitted for the record. Before we get into the testimony from Mr. Nordhaus, I see two strangers down there at the table whose testimony we now beseech. Will the smartest of the two Senators first begin? [Laughter.] committee. Senator DOMENICI. Mr. [Laughter.] Chairman and members of the Senator BINGAMAN. I knew Senator Domenici would rise to the invitation. Senator DOMENICI. Senator Bingaman should go first. Senator BINGAMAN. Go ahead. We will take this in seniority. STATEMENT OF HON. PETE V. DOMENICI, U.S. SENATOR FROM NEW MEXICO Senator DOMENICI. Well, I am going to be brief, Mr. Chairman, but first I must tell you that the personal relationships between the Nordhaus family and Pete Domenici go back at least 35 years. His father, also Bob Nordhaus, is just in all respects one of the true leaders in New Mexico and in particular in the city of Albuquerque where they have resided and lived for a long time. I have the greatest respect for him and because of that I have followed somewhat the career of his son who is before us today, Bob Nordhaus also. I do not think there is any question based upon background, experience-well, first, training, the best of law schools. We know he is a good lawyer, and then experience. I do not know there is any way that anybody could have a better backlog of experience (1) than he has had to qualify him for this job. Now, all of that is in the record. I am not going to repeat it, but clearly from FERC to a House committee that preceded the Energy Committee over there now to a law firm in between that has a great reputation, I just think it is good that the President nominated him. He is going to be good for the Department. My only question of him is now that he knows the complexities and difficulties, does he want this job. [Laughter.] Senator DOMENICI. He will apparently tell you all that he does. The CHAIRMAN. Thank you, Senator Domenici. STATEMENT OF HON. JEFF BINGAMAN, U.S. SENATOR FROM NEW MEXICO Senator BINGAMAN. Let me just add a couple of statements. I also have had the good fortune to know the senior Bob Nordhaus in Albuquerque for the time since I have been practicing law there. He is a real pillar of our legal community and our State community in all respects. The family is extremely well thought of. Bob comes to this job eminently qualified, as everyone knows. I think everyone on this committee is certainly aware of the importance of this job. The General Counsel's Office in the Department of Energy is usually a challenging position. In these times of tremendous change in that Department, it is a particularly challenging position, and I think he is the ideal person for it. I would also just point out what I mentioned to Secretary O'Leary just a minute ago and that he had mentioned to me, that is, the position of General Counsel there has been vacant for over a year now. I think that is another reason that we need to move quickly and get this nomination confirmed. The Department desperately needs someone with his experience and competence in that position. I think we are very fortunate that he is willing to take the job. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The CHAIRMAN. Thank you very much, Senator Domenici and Senator Bingaman. Gentlemen, if you would like to take your seats again. I think you are off to a good start, Bob. We are delighted to have you here and have you back in the Energy Department. Senator Wallop. STATEMENT OF HON. MALCOLM WALLOP, U.S. SENATOR FROM WYOMING Senator WALLOP. Mr. Chairman, I would just like to welcome Bob to the committee. I have a statement which I will put in the record, but I would just say that I wish all of the President's appointments had met with such a high degree of confidence and satisfaction. I really salute the President for this nomination and wish you well. [The prepared statement of Senator Wallop follows:] PREPARED STATEMENT OF HON. MALCOLM WALLOP, U.S. SENATOR FROM WYOMING Good morning. I would like to welcome to the Committee today Mr. Robert R. Nordhaus, the President's nominee for the position of General Counsel for the Department of Energy. Mr. Nordhaus' background certainly qualifies him for the position to which he has been nominated. Since graduating from Yale Law School in 1963, he has had a long career in the area of energy policy and energy regulation. His years of experience in the Legislative and Executive branches of government, as well as in the private sector, have prepared him well to take on the important responsibilities of General Counsel for DOE. Since 1981, he has been in the private practice of law, where he specialized in Federal electric and natural gas regulation and related clean air matters. Mr. Chairman, I believe Robert Nordhaus will serve the Department ably as General Counsel and I support his nomination. Mr. NORDHAUS. Thank you. The CHAIRMAN. Mr. Nordhaus, the rules of the committee which apply to all nominees require that you be sworn in connection with your testimony. If you will please rise and raise your right hand. [Whereupon, Mr. Nordhaus was duly sworn by the chairman.] The CHAIRMAN. Please be seated. Before you begin your statement, I will ask you three questions asked to each nominee before the committee. Will you be available to appear before this committee and other congressional committees to represent departmental positions and respond to issues of concern to the Congress? Mr. NORDHAUS. Yes, sir, I will. The CHAIRMAN. Are you aware of any personal holdings, investments, or interests that could constitute a conflict of interest or create the appearance of such a conflict should you be confirmed and assume the office to which you have been nominated by the President? Mr. NORDHAUS. My investments, personal holdings, and other interests have been reviewed both by myself and the appropriate ethics counselors within the Federal Government. I will take appropriate action to avoid any conflicts of interest, which will involve disposing of some investments and recusing myself from certain matters that my prior law firm handled. Once I take those actions, I believe there will be no conflicts of interest or appearances thereof. The CHAIRMAN. Are you involved or do you have any assets held in blind trusts? Mr. NORDHAUS. I do not. The CHAIRMAN. Do you have any family members here? Mr. NORDHAUS. Well, I would like to introduce my wife, Jean Nordhaus. The CHAIRMAN. Welcome, Jean. We are glad to have you here. Mr. NORDHAUS. The rest of the family is scattered around the country and we were not able to schedule them to get them in here, but they are waiting with bated breath for the result. [Laughter.] The CHAIRMAN. Well, Bob, as I said earlier, we are delighted to have you here and if you will proceed. Your written statement will be placed in the record. |