After the announced withdrawal of US Secretary of Energy Rick Perry, President Donald Trump has appointed a successor. On the involved in the Ukrainian affair Perry will follow his former vice Dan Brouillette, Trump wrote in the short message service Twitter. Brouillette has "unique" energy knowledge and will do "great work".
I want to thank Secretary of Energy Rick Perry for the outstanding job he has done. He wants to be at the end of the year to pursue other interests. Rick was a great Governor of Texas and a great Secretary of Energy ....
- Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 18, 2019Brouillette has been Deputy Energy Secretary since mid-2017. Previously, he worked for the US automaker Ford. He had also worked as a high-ranking employee of a Republican Congressman.
Trump had announced Thursday the withdrawal of Perry from his post at the end of the year, but without giving reasons. Perry had informed him months ago about his resignation plans.
Perry had made headlines in connection with the Ukrainian affair. Trump told US media reports in an internal round with Republicans that Perry had urged him to make a phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Selenskyj, who is at the center of the affair.
The room alleges that the Republican president used the power of his office to persuade Ukraine to investigate his political rival Joe Biden and his son Hunter. It also involves a previous job for Hunter Biden in an energy company operating in Ukraine.
According to the Democrats, Trump temporarily used blocked military aid for Ukraine as a lever. They have therefore initiated investigations into possible impeachment proceedings against Trump and also requested documents from Perry on the case.
However, the outgoing Minister of Energy does not seem to want to work with Congress to raise awareness of the Ukrainian economy. He would not hand over the desired documents to Parliament, as Congress's impeachment inquiry was not properly approved, a letter from the ministry said to parliamentarians. In addition, the documents may be secret.
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Prominent departures of the Trump government: And you're outIn Trump's previous term, there were unusually many throws, changes in personnel and resignations in the government apparatus. Only a few days ago Trump had announced the departure of his acting Homeland Security Secretary Kevin McAleenan.