Biden picks Rep. Deb Haaland (D-N.M.) to be first Native American interior secretary [View all]

[Arkansas Granny]

Source: Washington Post

President-elect Joe Biden has tapped Democratic Rep. Deb Haaland, a congresswoman from New Mexico, to serve as the first Native American interior secretary in a historic pick for a department that oversees the country’s vast natural resources, including tribal lands.

A member of Pueblo of Laguna, the 60 year-old Haaland would become the first descendant of the original people to populate North America to run the Interior Department. It marks a turning point for a 171-year-old institution that has often had a fraught relationship with 574 federally recognized tribes.

The first-term House member, who hails from a top oil- and gas-producing state, has pledged to transform the department from a champion of fossil fuel development into a promoter of renewable energy and policies to mitigate climate change.

Interior, which manages roughly one-fifth of land in the United States, will play a critical role in delivering on Biden’s vow to combat global warming. The former vice president has pledged to halt all new oil and gas drilling on public lands and waters, a daunting task that faces both legal and political obstacles. The extraction of oil, gas and coal in these areas account for nearly a quarter of the nation’s annual carbon output.

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2020/12/17/deb-haaland-interior-secretary-biden/?wpmk=1&wpisrc=al_news__alert-politics--alert-national&utm_source=alert&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=wp_news_alert_revere&location=alert&pwapi_token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJjb29raWVuYW1lIjoid3BfY3J0aWQiLCJpc3MiOiJDYXJ0YSIsImNvb2tpZXZhbHVlIjoiNTk2YThjM2JhZTdlOGEwZWYzM2Y3ZWRlIiwidGFnIjoid3BfbmV3c19hbGVydF9yZXZlcmUiLCJ1cmwiOiJodHRwczovL3d3dy53YXNoaW5ndG9ucG9zdC5jb20vY2xpbWF0ZS1lbnZpcm9ubWVudC8yMDIwLzEyLzE3L2RlYi1oYWFsYW5kLWludGVyaW9yLXNlY3JldGFyeS1iaWRlbi8_d3Btaz0xJndwaXNyYz1hbF9uZXdzX19hbGVydC1wb2xpdGljcy0tYWxlcnQtbmF0aW9uYWwmdXRtX3NvdXJjZT1hbGVydCZ1dG1fbWVkaXVtPWVtYWlsJnV0bV9jYW1wYWlnbj13cF9uZXdzX2FsZXJ0X3JldmVyZSZsb2NhdGlvbj1hbGVydCJ9.-fEbCh5IjwrPjUzRWGozyFfPJBXlA_TPu6WCHCsYa88