Deb Haaland confirmed as Interior Secretary with support from four Republican senators - Entrepreneur Generations

After a weeks-long confirmation process, on Monday the Senate confirmed Rep. Deb Haaland, D-N.M., as President Biden's Interior Secretary, marking the first time a Native American has held any cabinet-level position. Haaland, 60, is a registered member of the Laguna Pueblo Nation and was one of the first Native American women elected to Congress in 2018.

Four Republicans crossed the aisle to vote for Haaland in the 51-40 vote: Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan of Alaska (the state with the highest proportion of Native Americans), Sen. Susan Collins of Maine (the most rural state), and Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, Timothy Puko reports for The Wall Street Journal.

"Along with energy leases on federal land, Haaland will oversee the national parks and endangered-species protections. She will also lead the Bureau of Indian Affairs, a role that her supporters say will help reconcile long-troubled relations between Washington and America’s Indigenous peoples," Puko reports. Haaland's history of environmental activism and skeptical eye toward fracking triggered significant resistance from Republican senators during the confirmation process.

Presidential historian Heather Cox Richardson provides more context for Haaland's historic confirmation, including a brief overview of the Interior Department's history with regards to Native Americans and energy.

from The Rural Blog https://ift.tt/3trV7SA Deb Haaland confirmed as Interior Secretary with support from four Republican senators - Entrepreneur Generations

Posted by Entrepreneur Generations

Tweet