Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy’s reelection campaign is attacking challenger Rep. Julia Letlow on climate change, a topic that could gain traction in the race to represent a state dominated by the oil and gas industry.
The Cassidy campaign is accusing Letlow of going on a “paid junket” to COP28, the 2023 United Nations climate change conference held in the United Arab Emirates. Countries meet to discuss reducing greenhouse gas emissions and other steps to address the warming climate — including moving away from fossil fuels.
Even though numerous Republicans attended the annual meeting that year — and said they did so to tout U.S. leadership in reducing emissions — the Cassidy campaign hopes the line of attack helps him defeat a fellow Republican backed by President Donald Trump and Gov. Jeff Landry (R).
Records show the Climate Solutions Foundation — an organization that supports the bipartisan Climate Solutions Caucus, of which Letlow is a member — paid more than $16,000 for her travel expenses to Dubai.
“This shocking evidence proves Liberal Julia Letlow would sell out Louisiana oil and gas for the cost of a plane ticket,” Cassidy campaign manager Katie Larkin said in a statement. “Progressive leader Letlow flew on climate change activists’ dime to a swanky UN conference about dumping Louisiana’s 346,000 oil and gas jobs overboard, and that makes it clear for voters who she is.”
Letlow’s campaign fired back, saying the attack from Cassidy’s camp reeked of desperation. And they pointed to her record supporting Louisiana’s oil and gas industry — including opposing the Biden administration’s pause of new natural gas export terminals.
“This is another desperate attempt by Congresswoman Letlow’s opponents to smear her name because they know they are losing,” said Letlow’s campaign manager, Katherine Thordahl. “Rep. Letlow joined the world’s top oil and gas energy leaders to fight for Louisiana’s energy future, and has spent her time in Congress doing just that.”
The three-way contest between Cassidy, Letlow and State Treasurer John Fleming has grown more contentious as primary day nears May 16. Even with Trump and Landry’s backing, analysts have said all three have a chance of making a runoff.
Mary-Patricia Wray, a political consultant in Louisiana who is not working for any of the campaigns, said oil and gas issues and talk of climate change can make a difference in the state.
“When you tell people in Louisiana, when you say the word ‘climate,’ a lot of people are going to say, are you pro-oil and gas or not?” said Wray.
Cassidy himself has been the subject of conservative criticism over his legislation called the “Foreign Pollution Fee Act,” which aims to charge foreign countries for pollution and greenhouse gas emissions associated with their imports to the U.S.
Even though the idea has bipartisan support, conservatives see such legislation as a slippery slope toward a domestic carbon tax. The libertarian Cato Institute once dubbed it the “Cassidy Carbon Tax.”
Cassidy, however, has not backed away from the proposal during his reelection campaign. He touted the measure — while also praising Trump’s agenda — during an energy summit in Louisiana last year.
Wray noted Cassidy has consistently been a loyal voice for “drill, baby, drill,” aligning himself with the Trump administration and Landry “in a way that’s pretty much irrefutable.”
But many conservatives and Trump allies don’t see Cassidy as one of them. The senator, for example, voted to convict Trump during his second impeachment trial.
Former Republican Rep. Carlos Curbelo of Florida, who co-founded the Climate Solutions Caucus, doesn’t think Cassidy’s climate attack on Letlow will get much traction.
“Members of Congress travel all the time to all kinds of events,” said Curbelo. “It’s a surprising attack, especially coming from him. It’s an intense campaign, so suppose everyone is trying to throw everything at the wall. But it doesn’t seem to me that this will stick.”
There is some irony in the attack on Letlow. Environmental groups and many Democrats have long accused some Republicans of joining climate caucuses in Congress to insulate themselves against political attacks by appearing greener than they are.
Fossil fuel executives usually attend the conference along with climate activists and renewable energy interests, noted current the Climate Solutions Caucus co-chair, Rep. Andrew Garbarino (R-N.Y.).
“[Former] Speaker [Kevin] McCarthy [R-Calif.] was always favorable about making sure people went to things like that, so we can always be part of the conversation,” Garbarino said in an interview this week. “You can’t be part of the conversation if you’re not there.”
But after Trump retook the White House and pulled out of the Paris climate agreement again, few Republicans expressed interest in attending COP30 in Brazil last year.
Heather Reams, who runs the right-leaning Citizens for Responsible Energy Solutions, said she remembered speaking with Letlow at COP28, near the end of the trip.
“She was blown away by the amount of information and content she got, and perspective,” Reams recalled. “I think that should be commended, not criticized.”
Liz Crampton and Timothy Cama contributed to this report.
