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Billionaire Oil Ally Doug Burgum Confirmed As Trump’s Interior Chief

The Senate voted Thursday to confirm former North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum as President Donald Trump’s secretary of the Interior Department.

At the helm of the massive federal agency, Burgum will be responsible for managing 500 million acres of federal land ― roughly one-fifth of the United States — including 63 national parks, as well as conserving imperiled species and honoring the government’s trust responsibilities for more than 500 federally recognized tribes.

The Senate voted 79-18 to confirm Burgum as the nation’s 55th secretary of the Interior Department.

The billionaire software entrepreneur and two-term governor pledged during his Senate confirmation hearing to aggressively advance President Donald Trump’s “energy dominance” agenda via increased drilling on federal lands and to prioritize industry innovation over regulation. And he argued Trump’s energy vision has the ability to end foreign wars and drive down inflation, while protecting clean air and water.

“The American people have clearly placed their confidence in President Trump to achieve energy dominance,” Burgum said. “That’s the foundation of American prosperity, affordability for American families and unrivaled national security.”

Burgum’s nomination proved far less controversial than many of Trump’s other Cabinet appointees. During his confirmation hearing, Burgum escaped questions about his personal financial ties to oil tycoon and GOP megadonor Harold Hamm or his state’s support of a Utah lawsuit aimed at wresting control of millions of acres of public land from the federal government.

Burgum, who has voiced skepticism about the reliability of wind and other renewable energy, will step into the agency on the heels of Trump signing a suite of executive orders on energy and the environment, including directives to boost fossil fuel production and halt wind energy development. He would play an outsize role in carrying out those orders.

Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) said in a floor speech Thursday that Burgum’s confirmation would help bring an end to “the age of climate alarmism.”

“The golden age of American energy dominance is here,” he said.

Doug Burgum, pictured here during a Senate hearing earlier this month, was confirmed Thursday as President Donald Trump's secretary of the Interior Department.

During Trump’s first term, the Interior Department was plagued by ethics scandals. Trump’s first interior secretary, Ryan Zinke, resigned after two years on the job amid a flurry of federal investigations. At least four of those probes documented misconduct, including that he misused his office and lied to investigators.

Late last week, Trump fired at least 12 independent inspectors general, which act as internal agency watchdogs. Among those let go was Interior Inspector General Mark Greenblatt, a Trump nominee who released several scathing reports on ethical misdeeds during Trump’s first term.

In addition to his role at the helm of Interior, Burgum has been tapped to serve as chair of Trump’s newly formed National Energy Council, which will spearhead the administration-wide effort to slash regulations and increase energy production and exports.