Senate confirms former North Dakota governor Doug Burgum as Trump interior secretary
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Mr Doug Burgum ran against Mr Donald Trump for the Republican presidential nomination before quitting and becoming a Trump supporter.
PHOTO: AFP
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WASHINGTON – The US Senate on Jan 30 confirmed Mr Doug Burgum, former governor of North Dakota, as President Donald Trump’s interior secretary.
The vote was 79 to 18.
Mr Burgum, 68, will lead an agency that guides the use of 202 million hectares of federal and tribal land, a fifth of the nation’s surface area.
He is expected to pursue Mr Trump’s goal of maximising energy and mineral production on public lands, likely by ratcheting up new leasing in oil-producing states like Wyoming and New Mexico and in the Gulf of Mexico, which Mr Trump has said is now officially called the Gulf of America.
A wealthy former software executive, Mr Burgum has portrayed himself as a traditional, business-minded conservative.
During his nomination hearing, Mr Burgum said he would expand oil and gas drilling rights auctions and support permitting reforms that could speed development of energy projects like transmission lines and pipelines.
His comments signalled a sharp turn in federal policy after former president Joe Biden’s administration sought to limit oil and gas drilling on federal lands and promote renewable energy sources like wind and solar as part of its climate change agenda.
Mr Burgum ran against Mr Trump for the Republican presidential nomination before quitting and becoming a Trump supporter. He is also being considered to head a new national council to coordinate policies to boost US energy output. REUTERS
