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Watch live: Rick Perry's confirmation hearing

By Andrew V. Pestano

Jan. 19 (UPI) -- Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry, Donald Trump's pick to serve as secretary of energy, will testify before a Senate committee Thursday at his confirmation hearing.

The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources hearing is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. Opening remarks will be delivered by the chairman, Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, and the committee's ranking member, Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash.

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As a 2012 presidential candidate, Perry proposed abolishing the Department of Energy, which he would lead if confirmed. Perry also forgot the Energy Department's name during a November 2011 primary debate. In the incident, he identified three agencies he sought to close, and named the Commerce and Education departments before admitting, "The third one, I can't. Sorry, oops."

During the 2016 presidential primary campaign, Perry referred to Trump as a "barking carnival act" before dropping out of the race and endorsing Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas.

Since his nomination, Perry has resigned from the board of Energy Transfer Partners, the parent company of the Dakota Access Pipeline, in order to avoid the appearance of conflict of interest linking him to the controversial project.

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