Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R) is meeting with President-elect Donald Trump Monday to discuss a potential nomination to lead the Department of Energy.
Trump transition spokesman Jason Miller confirmed the meeting, which CBS News reported was set up over the weekend.
{mosads}If Trump chooses Perry as Energy secretary and he is confirmed by the Senate, Perry would lead a 13,000-strong department whose main missions include funding energy research, overseeing the nation’s nuclear weapons and regulating energy efficiency.
Bloomberg reported Sunday that Perry is now Trump’s top choice for Energy secretary.
When he ran in the Republican primary for president in 2011, Perry famously forgot the name of the Department of Energy.
At a primary debate, Perry tried to list three federal agencies he wanted to eliminate. But after listing the departments of Education and Commerce, he stumbled, saying, “The third one, I can’t. Sorry. Oops.”
Perry currently sits on the corporate board of Energy Transfer Partners, which is developing the controversial Dakota Access oil pipeline.
The Army Corps of Engineers is currently considering whether to grant the final easement Energy Transfer needs to build the line under Lake Oahe in North Dakota, facing strong international opposition from indigenous rights activists and environmentalists.
The Energy Department has no formal role in the Army Corps’s approval process.
Trump has also considered Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), Rep. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) and investor Ray Washburne to be Energy secretary. Manchin is meeting with Trump Monday as well.