After speaking to The John Fredericks Radio Show on Thursday morning, the Virginia GOP said Democratic gubernatorial candidate Ralph Northam “embraced” a controversial pipeline project.
During the show, Fredericks asked Northam whether he would allow for the construction of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline — a 600-mile steel tube that would distribute natural gas from West Virginia to — North Carolina throughout Virginia.
“…if it’s approved by the [Federal Energy Regulatory Commission] agency, that if they get the sign-off and if you’re governor of Virginia, that you’re going to do nothing to hinder it, stand in the way, or delay it,” Fredericks said. “You’re going to be enthusiastic and go forward with this. Is that what I’ve heard?”
After a slight pause, Northam says to Fredericks, “Yeah, sure.”
“And you know, again, it’s about the permitting process, not to get into it — to the weeds of all that,” Northam continues. “But, we’ve gone from a blanket permit to more of a site-specific and just to look at where there are streams and rivers, so if it’s done safely and responsibly then it’s going to move forward.”
In a statement from Garren Shipley, a spokesperson for the Virginia GOP, Shipley said that unlike Tom Periello, Northam’s primary opponent, Northam had yet to take a stance on the pipeline. Northam’s comments on the radio show, Shipley said, “fully embraced the Atlantic Coast Pipeline project, after months and months of dodging the question.”
On Northam’s campaign site under a section focused on environmental issues, it says Northam “will ensure a thorough permitting process for the Atlantic Coast and Mountain Valley Pipeline as permitted under state and federal law.”
When a reporter reached out to Northam for a comment, communications director David Turner said his stance remains the same.
“Dr. Northam has always said he wants DEQ’s evaluation to be rigorous, based in science, transparent, and to make sure that Virginia takes care of people’s property rights,” Turner said. “He believes the facts should dictate the outcome, and his position has not changed. This is simply an attempt by Republicans to distract from the major divisions between the neo-Confederate wing of their party and Ed Gillespie.”
Listen to a clip from Thursday morning’s radio show here.
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