One environmental group is calling for embattled Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke to resign, but another group isn’t so sure about whether his resignation would be a good thing, in light of the fact that his probable replacement, David Bernhardt, could be even worse.
After The Hill broke the news that the Interior Department’s internal watchdog referred its investigation of Secretary Ryan Zinke to the Department of Justice just days before the attempted, and subsequently walked-back, replacement of the Interior Inspector General with a Trump political appointee, Executive Director of Western Values Project Chris Saeger issued the following statement:
“It seems that either Secretary Zinke tried to interfere with an ongoing investigation or sought political retribution against Interior’s own watchdog. While we hope the Department of Justice runs a thoughtful and thorough investigation into Zinke’s conduct, the Secretary has violated the public’s trust one too many times. It’s time for Secretary Zinke to resign and allow the Department to move past his troubled tenure and focus on fulfilling its vital mission.”
Western Values Project, based in Whitefish, Montana, defends America's public lands through research and public education in order to hold policymakers and elected leaders accountable for jeopardizing the West's outdoor heritage.
The past several weeks have been a tumultuous time at Interior. After media reports in mid-October that the Interior Department’s Acting Inspector General Mary Kendall would be replaced with Suzanne Tufts, a political appointee from the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Interior Department on October 18 issued a statement that the reported replacement was “false information,” as I reported here on the Daily Kos: www.dailykos.com/...
In fact, Kendall will be staying in her job and there never had been any decision to replace Kendall with Tufts, according to the Office of Interior Secretary Zinke.
“HUD sent out an email that had false information in it,” said Heather Swift, a senior adviser to Zinke, in a statement. “Ms. Tufts was referred to the Department by the White House as a potential candidate for a position in the Inspector General’s office. At the end of the day, she was not offered a job at Interior.”
David Bernhardt, a former lobbyist for the Westlands Water District and the oil and gas industries who has dedicated much of his time trying to eviscerate environmental protections for Central Valley salmon and other species and to export more Delta water to corporate agribusiness interests on the west side of the San Joaquin Valley, is the heir-apparent to Zinke’s position, according to an article in Politico.
“Zinke has long been expected to join a post-election exodus from the Trump administration, even before this week’s reports that Interior’s internal watchdog had referred at least one investigation into the secretary's ethical problems to the Justice Department,” according to Politico. “And he already has an heir apparent: Deputy Secretary David Bernhardt, a longtime lobbyist for the oil and gas and water industries, who would be well placed to execute President Donald Trump's pro-fossil fuel, anti-regulatory policies.”
”Many environmental activists fear Bernhardt would be more effective than Zinke in executing Trump’s agenda. In fact, they contend he’s already doing it, having taken meetings with appropriations staff and led policy on top-tier items like overhauling the Endangered Species Act and reorganizing the department,” Politico stated.
In contrast with the Western Values Project, Aaron Weiss, media director with the Center for Western Priorities and “a frequent Zinke critic who has not called for him to resign or be fired,” told Politico, “Why would I want him to take over? I can’t say that I do.”
Meanwhile, two senior Trump administration officials said the White House is “growing increasingly concerned about allegations of misconduct against Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke” — and Trump has asked aides for “more information” about a Montana land deal under scrutiny by the Justice Department, according to the Washington Post. More information: www.washingtonpost.com/…