Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyoming) speaks in opposition to the nomination of Rep. Deb Haaland (D-New Mexico) to serve as Secretary of the Interior.

Lummis agreed it was "time" for a Native person to lead the Department of the Interior. But she said Haaland, who is a citizen of the Pueblo of Laguna, was too "radical" to hold a position that oversees Indian Country and public lands.

"I recognize the long-standing connection of Native Americans to the land," Lummis said on the floor of the U.S. Senate on March 11, 2021. 'Representative Haaland has that connection and I honor her heritage and how significant a Native American at the department of Interior is to the tribes and Indigenous people."

"But there is no connection between her heritage and the support of the Green New Deal and attacking oil and gas production is a means to address climate change," Lummis said in reference to Haaland's past positions on energy development.

Lummis spoke before the Senate cleared a procedural hurdle on Haaland's nomination on March 11. A final confirmation vote is expected on March 15.

The Department of the Interior is the federal agency with the most trust and treaty responsibilities to tribes and their citizens. It includes Bureau of Indian Affairs, the Bureau of Indian Education and the recently-established Bureau of Trust Funds Administration, which is taking over most of the duties previously assigned to the Office of the Special Trustee for American Indians.

Cover photo courtesy House Committee on Natural Resources, Democrats:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/naturalresourcesdems/49243640387/