Senator Alan Armstrong on Building American Energy Infrastructure

**Alan Armstrong** (0:04)
The Moderate Dems, I'm telling you, there's very little of that group that says, hey, we shouldn't, like, if you sit down and say, you know, this is the process we started off with, which was kind of the principles of permitting.
And we said, if we can come up with a bill that can accomplish these things, are you on board with this? It's not motherhood and apple pie, but it's close.

**Jason Bordoff** (0:31)
As the demand for power surges across the United States, the debate over how we build energy infrastructure has reached a fever pitch. And while both sides of the aisle broadly agree that our current permitting process is broken, turning that consensus into actual legislation remains a challenge. Joining us today is someone who brings a unique perspective to that energy debate. After nearly 40 years at Williams, 15 as CEO, Alan Armstrong was recently appointed to the US Senate representing Oklahoma. Now sitting in a policy role, he's advocating for measures to streamline energy buildouts, part of a broader wave of permitting reform efforts drawing bipartisan attention. So how do we define permitting reform? What does meaningful progress actually look like? Where do we stand today? Can lawmakers find common ground around the projects they want to see built? What role should the federal government play? And what role belongs to the states? And how does a former energy CEO navigate the sudden shift from corporate leadership to the Senate floor?
This is Columbia Energy Exchange, a weekly podcast from the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University. I'm Jason Bordoff.
Today on the show, Senator Alan Armstrong. Senator Armstrong is the junior US Senator from Oklahoma, a Republican who was appointed after Markwayne Mullin resigned to become Secretary of Homeland Security.
Senator Armstrong has never held elected office before his appointment, having spent his entire career at Williams Companies, one of the largest natural gas infrastructure companies in North America. He's also the former chair of the National Petroleum Council and a founding member of Natural Allies for a Clean Energy Future. In our conversation, Senator Armstrong reflects on his time at Williams and explains how the legislation he has introduced draws on that firsthand experience to reshape federal permitting policy. We dive into the role of judicial review, the power dynamic between federal and state regulators, and how growing energy affordability concerns are adding new pressure to pass meaningful permitting reform. I hope you enjoy our conversation.
Senator Alan Armstrong, wonderful to see you again. Thank you for making time to be on Columbia Energy Exchange.

**Alan Armstrong** (2:53)
Glad to be here.

**Jason Bordoff** (2:54)
Thanks, Jason. Thank you for hosting me in the Capitol in this great studio. So quite an upgrade from how we normally do these.

**Alan Armstrong** (3:01)
It is a very nice studio.

**Jason Bordoff** (3:02)
Nice to do these in person. They happen a lot more by Zoom now, so thanks. We're here in your new offices in the Hart Senate Office Building. So how are you settling in? What's it like to be a senator versus a CEO?

**Alan Armstrong** (3:13)
Yeah. Well, it's very different. I've been here since March 22nd, I think. So I've been here a while now. It's very different. But the good news is it's a new challenge, new set of skill sets. I've been CEO for almost 15 years.
So that starts to be a lot of the same old, same old.

**Jason Bordoff** (3:41)
Had you ever thought about public office before?

**Alan Armstrong** (3:43)
No. Never any interest, and I always thought about how bad I would be at it.
And how different the skill sets that I've seen for elected officials be different than my own. So I'm certain that the only way I was ever going to be one was to be kind of strong-armed into it. But it's been a great opportunity, very thankful actually for Governor Stitt's selection. My litmus test on this is like, well, would I rather not, if I just said no? And the answer is no. I'm glad, I'm honored to have the opportunity, and it is very challenging. Different set of skill sets, but I'm also learning a lot of different things. So, it's actually a pretty cool thing to step from being CEO and then Exec Chair for Williams to, because I'm not sure that transition would have been all that smooth for me. So, this has been really nice to have something else to kind of engage my brain on. So, overall, I'm very pleased with the situation.

**Jason Bordoff** (4:51)
You've been connected to government and public policy. Obviously, any CEO in the energy sector in particular needs to be, but even beyond what would be necessary with chairing the National Petroleum Council and things like that, is there anything that has surprised you or that's unexpected for what you have found in the federal policy world?