Biden withdraws Energy Department nominee who was blocked by Sen. Manchin over gas stove rules

President Joe Biden has withdrawn a nominee for a Department of Energy position over the concerns of West Virginia Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin about the candidate's support of efficiency standards limiting the sale of gas stoves. 

The nominee, Jeff Marootian, was picked to head the Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. The nomination was officially revoked Thursday, according to the Washington Examiner. 

Marootian currently serves as a senior adviser for the office under Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm.

His nomination was controversial due to his reported support of the DOE’s new appliance efficiency standards that cracked down on household appliances, including gas stoves. 

These new standards have mostly been opposed by Republicans and by Manchin, who serves as chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

“While I supported Mr. Marootian’s nomination in December, since then the office he’s been nominated to lead has proposed stove efficiency rules that I’ve raised concerns about," Manchin told the Washington Examiner in a statement.