(Photo: David Bernhardt shown meeting with officials in September 2017. Credit: Bureau of Reclamation, Flickr Creative Commons)The Senate voted 56-41 to confirm former lobbyist David Bernhardt as Department of the Interior secretary. President Trump tapped Bernhardt to replace Ryan Zinke, who announced his resignation last year amid ethics investigations.
Three Democrats voted for confirmation, the New York Times’ Coral Davenport wrote: Joe Manchin of West Virginia, who is also the senior Democrat on the Senate Energy Committee, Krysten Sinema of Arizona, and Martin Heinrich of New Mexico.
Several watchdog groups and Democrats are calling for formal investigations into Bernhardt’s conduct, Davenport noted. A recent investigation by the paper unearthed documents indicating that he continued lobbying for the Westlands Water District even after filing official notice saying he had stopped.
“Bernhardt is far too conflicted to lead this agency, given his track record of advocating for oil and gas, mining, agribusiness interests, and other polluters,” said John Bowman, managing director of government affairs at NRDC.
As secretary, Bernhardt oversees around 500 million surface acres.
“Interior manages onshore lands, subsurface rights, and offshore areas that produce approximately 19% of the nation’s energy, including 16% of natural gas, 24% of oil, and 43% of coal,” according to the department. “Federal lands also host projects that account for a significant portion of the nation’s renewable energy generating capacity, including 15% of hydropower, 7% of wind power, 48% of geothermal energy, and 33% of solar energy.”
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