On the recordMarch 1, 2017
what a historic day for Montana. As a fellow Montanan, as a member of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources and Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies, I look forward to working with Ryan Zinke in his new role as the Secretary of the Interior. Serving at the helm of the Department of the Interior, I know he will be a strong advocate for our public lands. He will uphold the Federal trust responsibility to Indian tribes, and he will help unleash American energy and will strengthen our water infrastructure. I have heard all week some friends on the other side of the aisle speak against my good friend from Montana, Ryan Zinke. I can tell you, I am perplexed. They are concerned that Ryan Zinke may not uphold the important roles of the Department of Interior--and that is to protect the public interests in land and mineral management--that he will take shortcuts to extract minerals. Let me tell you what Ryan Zinke will do, and I have known Ryan Zinke for 38 years. He will finally restore balance to the use and management of Federal land. Do you know that in Montana we have more recoverable coal than any State in the United States? Yet the Obama administration had planned to block our ability, Montana's ability, to develop these resources. A moratorium is not a responsible policy. It is reckless.…
Source
govinfo.gov




