Five Unanswered Questions Doug Burgum Must Answer Before the Senate Today
HELENA, MT — Interior Secretary Doug Burgum appeared before the House Appropriations Subcommittee this week and left House members with more questions than answers. Today, he faces the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee, and Save Our Parks is calling on senators to demand accountability on the issues Burgum dodged, deflected, and ducked entirely.
As the East Side Fire burns south of Red Lodge, Montana, forcing evacuations of 185 homes and closing Highway 212, Burgum will face scrutiny over a budget that guts the very agencies and resources that protect communities from exactly this kind of disaster. Here are five questions Secretary Burgum must answer before the Senate:
1. Why are you rushing your wildfire consolidation plan that could put western communities at risk? Even Republicans have called Burgum’s plan to centralize federal firefighting “stupid” as the secretary acts outside of congressional approval and authority. As a new wildfire burns in Montana right now and a mega drought grips the West, the Senate and public deserves real answers and transparency.
2. Why does wind and solar require secretary-level approval, but oil and gas does not? House members rightfully called out Burgum’s double standard on Monday. Members, and all Americans, deserve to know why Burgum is kneecapping more affordable clean energy development while fast-tracking fossil fuels.
3. Why did Burgum hand nearly $1 billion in public funds to a French energy company to cancel wind leases? Burgum claimed TotalEnergies “saw themselves as ineligible to build,” a nonsensical explanation that defies basic logic and deserves congressional scrutiny.
4. How do you justify a 25% cut to the National Park Service while the maintenance backlog exceeds $40 billion? Burgum’s own budget proposal would eliminate nearly 3,000 park jobs and leave parks languishing as he requests a $10 billion non-transparent slush fund for D.C. Trump-ification.
5. What exactly is the $10 billion “Presidential Capital Stewardship Program,” and who does it serve? Senators and the public deserve an explanation from Burgum about this slush fund and its intent.
Burgum is appearing before the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee this morning at 10 am ET.
Additional Background:
Questions About Burgum’s Park Privatization & Public Land Sell Off Budget
NEW: Interior Secretary Doug Burgum’s Disastrous Budget A Nightmare for America’s National Parks
To speak with Save Our Parks spokesperson Jayson O’Neill, email jayson@focalpointstrategygroup.com.
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