Happy New Year 2025

Tag: Interior

Former Interior Secretary Deb Haaland announces bid for New Mexico governor

Former Interior Sec. Deb Haaland has announced a New Mexico gubernatorial bid.

The politician, who served in a cabinet post during most of former President Joe Biden’s White House tenure, previously served in the U.S. House of Representatives.

“But the problems we face now are bigger than ever, and we must be fierce to solve them. That’s why I am running for governor of the great state of New Mexico,” she said in a video.

STRANGE LAWS IN NEW MEXICO, INCLUDING TROUBLE FOR TRIPPING A HORSE

President Joe Biden greets Department of the Interior Sec. Deb Haaland during the 2022 White House Tribal Nations Summit at the Department of the Interior on Nov. 30, 2022 in Washington, D.C. (Pete Marovich/Getty Images)

“New Mexico is rich in tradition and spirit, rich in natural resources. So why can’t our families pay our bills? Crime, poverty, homelessness, addiction — they will keep pulling us down if we do the same things and expect a different result,” she declared.

Last month on Jan. 20 — the day President Donald Trump was inaugurated — Haaland suggested in a post on X that the new administration does not care about “regular people.”

VIDEO CAPTURES COURTROOM BRAWL AS TWO MEN ATTACK MURDER SUSPECT DURING HEARING

Interior Secretary Deb Haaland speaks at a ceremony with President Joe Biden at the Department of Labor on Dec. 16, 2024 in Washington, D.C. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

“With the inauguration of President Trump, there’s a lot at stake. He surrounds himself with super-rich people who look down on us and our communities. We will need to do the hard work of getting important things done and pushing back against an administration that couldn’t care less about regular people,” Haaland tweeted.

Current New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, a Democrat who has served as governor since 2019, is not eligible to run in 2026.

2028 WATCH: HERE ARE THE DEMOCRATS WHO MAY EVENTUALLY JUMP INTO THE NEXT WHITE HOUSE RACE

The American flag and state of New Mexico flag fly side-by-side at the New Mexico Museum of Art in Santa Fe, N.M. (Robert Alexander/Getty Images)

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The state went to Democrats in the 2008 through 2024 presidential elections. But its prior governor, Susana Martinez, was a Republican.

Alex Nitzberg is a writer for Fox News Digital.

February 11, 2025
‘Exciting chapter’: Interior Sec takes aim at Biden oil lease ban, ‘coercive’ climate policies in Day 1 orders

President Donald Trump’s administration is taking aim at various Biden-era environmental rules and regulations by stripping the energy sector of “coercive” climate policies and oil lease bans, and launching internal investigations into agency actions that “burden” energy development.

Secretary of Interior Doug Burgum, who was sworn-in on Friday, spent his first full day on the job implementing six new orders that reinforce Trump’s agenda and set the tone for the department over the next four years.

The secretary’s orders include examining ways to eliminate “harmful” and “coercive” climate policies, lifting Biden-era bans on oil and gas leases, and conducting a review of the legislation that funded the former administration’s green energy agenda, known as the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).

“Today marks the beginning of an exciting chapter for the Department of the Interior,” Burgum said in a statement. “We are committed to working collaboratively to unlock America’s full potential in energy dominance and economic development to make life more affordable for every American family while showing the world the power of America’s natural resources and innovation.”

FEDERAL AGENCIES SCRUB CLIMATE CHANGE FROM WEBSITE AMID TRUMP REBRANDING

Then-North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum speaks during a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee confirmation hearing in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025. (Al Drago)

In a press release issued on Monday, Burgum announced the department’s first initiatives.

The DOI pledged to expedite the completion of all authorized infrastructure and environmental projects to address the National Energy Emergency, which was declared by Trump on Inauguration Day.

‘SCREAM NIGHT’: CLIMATE ACTIVISTS REPEATEDLY DISRUPT DNC LEADERSHIP MEETING

The department will also conduct a review of all appropriations from the IRA, after former President Joe Biden spent the remaining months of his presidency trying to rapidly dish out funds from the bill to fund green energy projects across the country.

President Donald Trump arrives at an election night watch party at the Palm Beach Convention Center on Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024. (Evan Vucci)

Additionally, the DOI said that for every new regulation issued, the department will eliminate at least 10 existing ones as part of Trump’s “deregulation agenda.”

Burgum also demanded “immediate compliance” with Trump’s overturning of Biden’s oil and gas lease ban, specifically in the Outer Continental Shelf, and said the department will be conducting a review of all agency actions that “potentially burden the development of domestic energy resources.”

The DOI, on Monday, also withdrew a June 2021 Biden administration order that halted oil and gas leasing in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, a coastal plain that the first and second Trump administrations have eyed as an oil and gas resource.

Former President Joe Biden implemented several environmental regulations during his term. (Kevin Dietsch)

“Together, we will ensure that our policies reflect the needs of our communities, respect tribal sovereignty, and drive innovation that will keep the U.S. at the forefront of energy and environmental leadership,” Burgum said in a statement.

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Climate activist groups, however, have not been supportive of Burgum’s nomination.

“From opening more public lands for extraction to attacking countless protections of lands, water, and wildlife, it’s clear that President Trump is committed to expanding fossil fuels and catering to industry at the expense of our climate, public lands and waters, and wildlife,” Earthjustice, an environmental law group, wrote in opposition to Burgum’s nomination.

Aubrie Spady is a Writer for Fox News Digital.

February 4, 2025
Senate set for confirmation vote on Doug Burgum, Trump’s pick to lead the Interior

The Senate is set for a Thursday confirmation vote for President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Interior Department, former North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum.

The upper chamber voted to advance Burgum’s nomination to a confirmation vote on Wednesday by a 78–20 margin.

Burgum appeared before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee in mid-January, where he told lawmakers that national security issues and the economy were his top two priorities for leading the agency.

BURGUM GRILLED ON ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES TARGETED BY TRUMP DURING CONFIRMATION HEARING: ‘DRILL, BABY, DRILL’

Doug Burgum served as governor of North Dakota from 2016 to 2024. (Saul Loeb)

“When energy production is restricted in America, it doesn’t reduce demand,” Burgum said in his opening statement Jan. 16. “It just shifts production to countries like Russia and Iran, whose autocratic leaders not only don’t care at all about the environment, but they use their revenues from energy sales to fund wars against us and our allies.”

Lawmakers, including Democratic Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, questioned Burgum on whether he would seek to drill for oil in national parks if Trump asked him to.

“As part of my sworn duty, I’ll follow the law and follow the Constitution. And so you can count on that,” Burgum said. “And I have not heard of anything about President Trump wanting to do anything other than advancing energy production for the benefit of the American people.”

ZELDIN GRILLED BY DEMOCRATS ON CLIMATE CHANGE, TRUMP’S STANCE ON CARBON EMISSIONS DURING EPA HEARING

Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, left, questioned Gov. Doug Burgum, right, on whether he plans to “drill, baby, drill.” (Getty Images)

Burgum served as governor of North Dakota from 2016 to 2024. He also launched a presidential bid for the 2024 election in June 2023, where energy and natural resources served as key issues during his campaign.

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Burgum appeared during the first two Republican presidential debates, but didn’t qualify for the third and ended his campaign in December 2023. He then endorsed Trump for the GOP nomination a month later ahead of the Iowa caucuses.

Aubrie Spady, Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, and Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report.

Diana Stancy is a politics reporter with Fox News Digital covering the White House.

January 30, 2025
Senate advances Trump’s pick to lead the US Interior, Doug Burgum

The Senate voted Wednesday to advance President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Interior Department — former North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum — for a final confirmation vote.

Burgum appeared before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee in mid-January, where he told lawmakers that national security issues and the economy were his two top priorities for leading the agency.

“When energy production is restricted in America, it doesn’t reduce demand,” Burgum said in his opening statement Jan. 16. “It just shifts production to countries like Russia and Iran, whose autocratic leaders not only don’t care at all about the environment, but they use their revenues from energy sales to fund wars against us and our allies.”

TRUMP ENERGY NOMINEE HECKLED BY CLIMATE PROTESTERS, DERIDED BY DEM SENATOR AS ‘ENTHUSIAST FOR FOSSIL FUELS’

Former North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum is sworn in during a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing on his nomination to be Secretary of the Interior, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 16, 2025. (Saul Loeb)

Democratic Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, questioned Burgum on whether he would seek to drill for oil in national parks if Trump asked him to.

“As part of my sworn duty, I’ll follow the law and follow the Constitution. And so you can count on that,” Burgum said. “And I have not heard of anything about President Trump wanting to do anything other than advancing energy production for the benefit of the American people.”

BURGUM GRILLED ON ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES TARGETED BY TRUMP DURING CONFIRMATION HEARING: ‘DRILL, BABY, DRILL’

Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, left, questioned Gov. Doug Burgum, right, on whether he plans to “drill, baby, drill.” (Getty Images)

Additionally, Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., questioned whether Burgum backed repealing credits for electric vehicles that may be in jeopardy under the Trump administration.

“I support economics and markets,” Burgum said.

Burgum served as governor of North Dakota from 2016 to 2024. He also launched a presidential bid for the 2024 election in June 2023, where energy and natural resources served as key issues during his campaign.

ZELDIN GRILLED BY DEMOCRATS ON CLIMATE CHANGE, TRUMP’S STANCE ON CARBON EMISSIONS DURING EPA HEARING

North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum served as governor of North Dakota from 2016 to 2024. (Mike Segar/Reuters)

Burgum appeared during the first two Republican presidential debates, but didn’t qualify for the third and ended his campaign in December 2023. He then endorsed Trump for the GOP nomination a month later ahead of the Iowa caucuses.

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Aubrie Spady, Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, and Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report.

Diana Stancy is a politics reporter with Fox News Digital covering the White House.

January 29, 2025