Hillary Clinton said she would not commit to signing an agreement not to take money from fossil fuel companies while fielding questions in a town hall in Iowa on Wednesday.
When asked if she had ever received money from the fossil fuel industry, the candidate responded, “Well, I don’t know that I ever have, I’m not exactly one of their favorites.”
“So individuals who may have some connection to whatever industry, I’m not going to do a litmus test on them, I don’t think there are a lot that support me,” Clinton added, speaking of her donors tied to the fossil fuel industry. “The [fossil fuel] companies don’t support me because they know I’m going to be very adamant about moving us towards clean renewable energy.”
The Democratic front-runner has called climate change one of “the most important issues of our time” and has praised President Obama’s Paris climate deal.
But she does, in fact, have deep ties to the oil industry. Forty of the registered lobbyists bundling for the Clinton campaign have a past working in the fossil fuel industry, according to a report. Clinton also has multiple Chevron lobbyists raising money for her campaign, and the oil company has funneled millions of dollars to the Clinton Foundation while it underwent an environmental lawsuit.
Despite these ties, Clinton insisted to the voter that her clean energy views are well known, and that as president she would work to move away from fossil fuels.
“I support moving away from fossil fuels towards renewable energy. I go all over this country bragging about Iowa, because you are getting a third of your electricity already from renewables, primarily wind,” Clinton said. “I am not in favor of drilling off our coasts, I was out there first even before the president against drilling in the Arctic. I believe strongly that we need to have a stance of transition, so everyone knows where I stand.”
