Callista Gingrich, President Trump’s nominee to be ambassador to the Vatican, said President Trump still wants the U.S. to be a leader in protecting the environment even after he withdrew the country from the Paris climate deal.

Gingrich, whose husband, Newt, has been a top supporter of Trump, said Tuesday in her testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that Trump wants to maintain "our clean air and our clean water" and that "we aren't backing off of that" commitment, according to The Associated Press.

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Trump has faced sharp criticism for pulling the U.S. out of the global Paris climate agreement in May.

Democrats on the committee responded to Gingrich with skepticism, with Sen. Jeff Merkley Jeffrey (Jeff) Alan MerkleyThe Hill's Morning Report - Sponsored by The Air Line Pilots Association - Trump, Biden renew push for Latino support Sunday shows - Trump team defends coronavirus response Oregon senator says Trump's blame on 'forest management' for wildfires is 'just a big and devastating lie' MORE (D-Ore.) saying he must have missed Trump’s comments that led to her statements.

"I wish it were so," Merkley said. "I'm not persuaded."

Gingrich was testifying as part of the confirmation process to make her ambassador to the Vatican.

Pope Francis gave Trump a copy of the encyclical he wrote about climate change during a May meeting, shortly before Trump pulled the U.S. from the climate agreement.

Gingrich told the committee that she believes in climate change and that "some of it is due to human behavior."