Interior Secretary

[Charley]

Please see the following Politico article about the likely next Interior Secretary.

http://www.politico.com/story/2016/12/t ... ent-232716

It appears having a back country hunter in the family may have averted one of the worst possibilities of the Trump Presidency. If the Interior Secretary is not interested, it seems less likely that the Feds will start selling off public lands to rich people and oil & gas companies. The possibility of a public lands giveaway was giving me the most worries about this next administration (aside from WW III, of course). More likely, we'll see increased drilling. Well, that's still better than giving those lands away to the highest bidder, forever.
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As an aside, I've been up on a high horse for years about mountain bike access. Often, I've argued that the negatives of environmental impact from increased recreational mountain bike use (as is true with impact from hikers, equestrians, hunters, anglers, and every other class of use) is far outweighed by the benefits of a larger constituency of people who recreate on public lands. In this case, backcountry hunters, who would stand to lose access to prime hunting grounds for many species, have advocated forcefully and apparently successfully for a person whose policy preferences would preserve public lands for the public. While the threat of losing public lands remains real, that threat may be less imminent. We can hope.

[drm]

Well, if it is true that hunters and anglers are driving the process, then I'm not sure there will be an open season on drilling as that does tend to close off options for sporting activity.

But I'm not putting too much stock in these speculations. The contradictions between positions taken by the president-elect during his campaign (and since) and his nominees for cabinet are so numerous as to make it pretty pointless to put much stock in it.

[BigBear]

I can't say I am trilled about ANY of the Cabinet choices. It's a pro-business environment in the new presidency that doesn't care about workers or consumers. They want to rollback all of the regulations and just make unlimited money. Perhaps we should start a pool: which Cabinet head will be indicted first?

Then again, Obama's Justice Dept. blew it big time by allowing the Alberstons purchase of Safeway and the Anheuser Busch purchase of Miller. Anyone heard of the Sherman Anti-Trust Amendment? Consumers and workers can't expect a fair shake from either parrty.

Sure the environmeent is important, but it sits back in the bumper seat over the trunk when it comes to jobs and purchasing power of the middle class. Unless I can find a sponcer to fund my hiking appetite, that's just the way it has to be.

[Steve20050]

I can't say I am trilled about ANY of the Cabinet choices. It's a pro-business environment in the new presidency that doesn't care about workers or consumers. They want to rollback all of the regulations and just make unlimited money. Perhaps we should start a pool: which Cabinet head will be indicted first?

Then again, Obama's Justice Dept. blew it big time by allowing the Alberstons purchase of Safeway and the Anheuser Busch purchase of Miller. Anyone heard of the Sherman Anti-Trust Amendment? Consumers and workers can't expect a fair shake from either parrty.

Sure the environmeent is important, but it sits back in the bumper seat over the trunk when it comes to jobs and purchasing power of the middle class. Unless I can find a sponcer to fund my hiking appetite, that's just the way it has to be.

Well the early rumors were for Sarah Palin to get the interior job. At least we would have had some continuity in this administration. As she always said she could see Russia from home Yes, seems we are to have a guy run the Department of Energy that couldn't remember he wanted to eliminate it, if he could just remember what department he was referring to . Someone to run the Labor Department that likes more robotics for cost savings .Someone who has had various lawsuits against the EPA run that. . It couldn't get much better, than "We the people of the United Corporations of America". Should we go on....Sorry for the politics, but Wow.