Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke will be leaving the Trump Administration at the end of the year after having the Cabinet-level position since March 1, 2017. President Donald Trump said a a new Interior Department chief will be named next week.
The former Montana congressman had expenditure controversies arise just months after he joined the White House over using private aircraft to perform political duties. Democrats, who have just re-taken the majority in the House of Representatives, are hinting at admonishing the secretary in an official hearing. Concerns with scrutiny and legal costs are said to be factors in Zinke’s decision.
Trump, who has reportedly been aware of situation for days, said on Twitter:
“Secretary of the Interior @RyanZinke will be leaving the Administration at the end of the year after having served for a period of almost two years. Ryan has accomplished much during his tenure and I want to thank him for his service to our Nation.”
Zinke helped define an agenda at the department of “energy dominance” and a de-regulatory attitude towards environmental regulations, leading the U.S. to surpass Saudi Arabia and Russia in oil production and becoming a net exporter. Although he is out, acting-Interior Secretary David Bernhardt is likely to continue the same route.
Bernhardt was briefly in charge of the Interior Department transition team for Trump after his 2016 presidential victory. Up until January 2017, he also served on the board of directors for the Virginia Board of Game and Inland Fisheries, resigning to work with the White House.
Known to take ethics seriously, Bernhardt also answered questions from the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources during his hearing last year, stating that the would “be honest with the science” in the application of his position.
Zinke’s departure follows other Cabinet-level shake-ups after the midterm elections. On Friday, President Trump picked OMB Director Mick Mulvaney as “acting” White House senior aide as Chief of Staff John Kelly will be leaving the West Wing in just over two weeks. It was rumored that the four-star general and the President have not been on speaking terms.
Last week, Trump also appointed acting-Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Heather Nauert, a former Fox News host, to become the next U.N. Ambassador. Nikki Haley, a former South Carolina governor, added that she is not stepping down at the end of 2018 for a run at the presidency in 2020, saying that she wanted to “take a little time off.”
Nevertheless, Nauert’s meteoric rise from journalist to powerful U.S. diplomat in just 20 months with the federal government is likely to raise questions from Democrats at the eventual confirmation hearing.
The former Justice Department head under the late President George H. W. Bush, William Barr, was nominated for his old post after Jeff Sessions was ousted after a post-midterm election press conference. Barr is a Reagan-era policy staffer known as a strong defender of presidential power and aggressive actions on terrorism and drug-trafficking.
The move to confirm would end the animus from the media against acting-Attorney General Matt Whitaker, a staunch Trump ally, as anxiety over White House Special Counsel Robert Mueller‘s investigation into Russian collusion in the 2016 presidential election continues.
For a replacement at the Department of Interior, the President said a decision will be coming within a week. According to Bloomberg, potential contenders for the post include Republican Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (WA-5); Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes (R); Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt (R); Idaho Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter (R); outgoing Nevada Senator Dean Heller (R); outgoing Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker (R), and former Wyoming Republican congresswoman Cynthia Lummis.