Freshman congresswoman Kendra Horn is in an unusual position for a Democrat.
She’s running as the defender of the oil and gas industry, which is dominant in her district, Oklahoma’s 5th, even as her party is demanding reducing fossil fuel use to combat climate change.
Whether Horn can establish herself as an industry ally will be a key factor in whether she can hang onto her seat in a face-off with GOP state Sen. Stephanie Bice. President Trump won the district by about 13 percentage points in 2016.
“I have an important voice on how we can and should be both addressing environmental issues and supporting an all-of-the-above approach to having a sustainable energy policy that protects jobs and economic opportunity and addresses important climate issues,” Horn told the Washington Examiner in an interview.
Republicans and oil industry leaders are accusing Horn, who opposes the liberal “Green New Deal,” of abandoning oil and gas producers.
But their task was recently made more difficult when the U.S. Chamber of Commerce endorsed her. She is one of nearly two House Democrats the business group supported, in a break with its alliance with Republicans.
Horn is touting the Chamber’s endorsement as an affirmation of her success at delivering for the fossil fuel industry.
“The Chamber recognizes my sensible, thoughtful approach to policy, business, and job creation, and I am very proud of that recognition,” Horn said.
GOP House Leader Kevin McCarthy singled out the endorsement of Horn as proof that the Chamber had “sold out” Republicans.
“You had Oklahoma. … They wanted to endorse Stephanie Bice, not Kendra Horn that’s sitting and backing Pelosi or the ‘Green New Deal,’” McCarthy said on Fox News Thursday night, overstating Horn’s position.
McCarthy noted that business leaders in Oklahoma opposed the Chamber’s endorsement of Horn, with the state’s oil and gas industry accusing her of voting with Democrats most of the time on energy issues.
“I question how the U.S. Chamber could endorse a candidate who consistently voted against the largest industry in Oklahoma, employing over 90,000 workers throughout the state. That is hardly a pro-business record,” State Chamber CEO and President Chad Warmington reportedly said in a letter to the U.S. Chamber. Warmington was the president of the Petroleum Alliance of Oklahoma last year.
Allen Wright, a top official at Devon Energy, an oil and gas producer based in Oklahoma City, part of the 5th District, stepped down from the U.S. Chamber’s political advisory committee, in part because of the group’s endorsement of Horn, Politico reported.
Horn says she has not abandoned her district’s oil and gas industry and considers herself a crucial, outlier voice among Democrats on how to handle fossil fuels as part of the party’s aggressive agenda to combat climate change.
“I clearly stood up to leaders in my party against a federal ban on fracking,” Horn said.
Horn said she does not support plans proposed by former Vice President Joe Biden and House Democratic leaders to eliminate carbon emissions from the power sector within 15 or 20 years through a clean electricity standard or mandate.
A clean electricity standard requires electric utilities to use an increasing amount of power from zero-carbon sources such as wind, solar, and nuclear, which would box out fossil fuels in most circumstances.
Horn considers the idea impractical and unnecessary, noting that natural gas has been the biggest contributor to emissions reductions in electricity over the last decade by replacing coal.
“I have a much different approach to some of my colleagues,” Horn said. “Some ideas that have been proposed are unrealistic and unachievable and would be harmful to the nation’s energy independence, national security, and families.”
Horn argues oil and gas is a “critical” part of the nation’s energy future along with solar and wind, which is growing in prominence in Oklahoma. Last year, Oklahoma ranked second after Texas in electricity generated from wind, supplying 35% of the state’s power.
“I have spent a great deal of time as a Democrat in an energy state working to educate my colleagues on the importance of oil and gas and how natural gas is a critical component in addressing energy issues and greenhouse gas emissions,” Horn said.
Horn avoided a direct answer when pressed to answer whether the United States needs to use less fossil fuels over time to combat climate change sufficiently.
“We have to act now, but it doesn’t mean there is a switch we can magically flip,” Horn said. “It can’t be all or nothing.”
Critics say Horn has not supported the broader oil and gas industry outside the state.
Horn holds a 93% score from the environmental group League of Conservation Voters. The group credited her with voting last year to prevent Trump from withdrawing the U.S. from the Paris climate agreement.
Horn voted last year to restrict offshore oil and gas drilling.
She also voted to prevent drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, aiming to block a chief victory for Republicans who overturned a ban on oil and gas development in the Alaska refuge.
Horn supported keeping Obama administration regulations designed to limit methane leaks from oil and gas operations, which Trump has weakened.
Horn defends those positions by arguing producing oil in Oklahoma is different from drilling in the ocean or in other places where her constituents aren’t present. She says oil and gas producers benefit from controlling methane leaks, both reputationally and economically.
Horn stepped up for the industry during its worst moment, she said, backing a Trump administration proposal blocked by Democratic leaders to buy oil to restock the nation’s emergency Strategy Petroleum Reserve as a way to help oil companies grapple with the pandemic-fueled price crash.
Describing her philosophy, Horn said she takes each vote as unique and considers her independence streak a virtue in a partisan environment. She noted Democrats took back the House in 2018 on the backs of centrists.
“With every vote, especially with oil and gas, I take my time, I read the bill text, and I do so in the context of what it means for Oklahomans and jobs,” Horn said. “I don’t simply check a box. The press and media give a lot of attention to the extremes, but the Democratic Caucus is diverse, and it’s important we have voices like mine at the table.”
