Jeff Bingaman: “As the principal steward of our public lands, the Secretary of the Interior is responsible for overseeing and protecting…”

“As the principal steward of our public lands, the Secretary of the Interior is responsible for overseeing and protecting the natural and cultural treasures of our Nation, including all units of our National Park System, national wildlife refuges, most national monuments, national conservation areas, and many of our wilderness areas. When the Energy and Natural Resources Committee...began its hearings on the nomination of Gale Norton to be Secretary of the Interior, I indicated that I had serious doubts about whether Ms. Norton's past views on the role of the Federal Government in enforcing environmental protection laws were consistent with the responsibilities of the Secretary of the Interior. In her many published articles, Ms. Norton had amassed a record that championed the rights of individuals over the public interest in many natural resource issues; she had argued that key environmental protection laws--including critical provisions of the Endangered Species Act and the Surface Mining Act-- were unconstitutional; and she had often supported the interests of economic development over environmental protection.”