John Kerry, President Biden’s special presidential envoy for climate change, held investments in oil companies prior to divesting from the stocks as he took over the position, according to financial forms.
Kerry’s financial disclosure forms, which were obtained by Fox News, show that the former secretary of state was financially invested in numerous oil companies, including Duke Energy, Cimarex, Dominion Energy, Exelon Corporation and Valero Energy.
As Biden’s climate envoy, he will push policies that run counter to his personal investments before taking over the post. At the same time that Kerry held investments in oil companies, he also worked with climate groups The Rise Fund, where he served as a senior adviser, and Climate Finance Partners, where he acted as chairman of the advisory board.
In early March, Kerry warned the oil and gas industry that if it doesn’t embrace clean energy it will be “sitting there with a lot of stranded assets” and “end up on the wrong side of the battle.” He also said the industry should be figuring out “how do we become not an oil-and-gas company, but how do we become an energy company.”
The financial forms show that Kerry’s total investments were valued between $4.2 million and $15 million. He was paid $5 million from Bank of America and collected hundreds of thousands in honorarium from the likes of Deutsche Bank, Zurich Insurance Company and MedStar Washington.
The State Department told Axios, which first reported on Kerry’s financial disclosure, that the climate czar has divested from all assets that could pose conflicts of interest. Kerry has signed an ethics pledge stating he will not participate in decisions involving his former clients and employers.
Kerry has also faced scrutiny over the use of his family’s private jet as he speaks out against climate change. The jet recently made a trip to Idaho as he went on an international climate tour, Fox News reported.
