This story was produced as part of the Colorado Capitol News Alliance. It first appeared at cpr.org.
President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Bureau of Land Management failed to assuage Democratic concerns about his past support to sell public lands during his Senate confirmation hearing on Wednesday.
Sen. John Hickenlooper, D-Colo., has already said he won’t support former Rep. Steve Pearce’s nomination to be BLM Director because of his past comment on selling off public lands.
He said he’s heard lots of concerns “about your nomination over many of the things that you've said around selling public lands,” which have included using the money from public lands sales to pay down the deficit or for education.
Pearce is a former congressman from New Mexico who founded an oilfield services company before getting into politics.
Ranking Member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources committee, Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., said because of some of those past comments it “makes it challenging to view his tenure, his potential tenure at the BLM, as one of stewardship.”
Heinrich gave the 78-year-old Pearce an opportunity to address his past position on public land sales.
“The Secretary [of the Interior] has been very straightforward that he does not visualize any large scale sales of land,” Pearce said. Pearce also pointed out that federal law does not allow BLM director to have large scale sales, adding he’d look to the committee to identify “isolated parcels” to sell.
It was his answer to multiple questions surrounding his previous support for public lands sales.
Still, during one exchange with Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., Pearce said, “I am not so sure that I've changed. I'm not sure that I was not speaking out of sheer frustration with an agency on behalf of the people who are being overwhelmed.”
He went on to add he believes in the public lands mission.
“I recognized the importance of the federal lands and support the missions completely,” he said. “I do not believe that we have too much federal land sitting in public hands. I know that it creates great stress in the West to have these lands managed from Washington, that I do know.”
A number of conservation, hunting and veterans groups, as well as local officials, have come out in opposition to Pearce’s nomination to oversee 245 million acres of federal lands and 700 million acres of subsurface minerals.
“Most people would prepare for a job interview beforehand. Steve Pearce claimed he wasn’t up to speed on everything from wind power to methane waste. His ‘I know nothing’ routine should be a red flag to every senator,” said Aaron Weiss, deputy director of the Center for Western Priorities. “Pearce even waffled on whether he still believes the many, many things he's written about land sell-off, and he still has to answer huge questions about his ethical conflicts and businesses.”
Pearce had his supporters in the chamber, including chair of the committee Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, who also stressed that the BLM Director does not have the authority to institute large public lands sales. Lee had pushed public lands sales in the Republican reconciliation bill.
Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., introduced Pearce, recalling their time serving together in the U.S. House. “He's one of those rare Republicans who served in a bright blue state and the way he got elected was by constantly going and listening to his constituents, not just showing up during election years, but showing up every weekend for family events in the communities that he represented.”
She added that Pearce found ways to work across the aisle. “That's exactly the kind of leadership BLM needs,” she said.
Pearce stressed his background working with local stakeholders and said if confirmed that’s what he’d do as BLM Director.
“We can and must balance the different uses of public land, local economies, and future generations depend on us doing our job right.”
Groups such as the National Cattlemen's Beef Association and energy groups have rallied around Pearce.
“Steve Pearce is exactly the kind of experienced, principled leader we need at the helm of the Bureau of Land Management,” said Melissa Simpson, president of the Western Energy Alliance, in a statement. “His long record in Congress shows a consistent commitment to multiple use—expanding domestic energy production, supporting grazing and recreation, and protecting truly special landscapes through targeted conservation.”
Still when it comes to whether Pearce would oppose large public lands sales, Hickenlooper noted there's a lot of distrust right now. “And you’re going to have to work very hard to dispel that.”
Trump has not had a lot of success in getting a BLM director confirmed. His nominee during his first administration, William Perry Pendley, was ultimately withdrawn over his support for public lands sales and his history of suing the BLM when he led the Mountain States Legal Foundation.
Trump initially nominated oil and gas advocate Kathleen Sgamma to be head of BLM during his second administration, but she withdrew her nomination over a critical memo she wrote to her organization after the January 6th riot at the U.S. Capitol.
Pearce’s nomination needs to be voted on in committee before it can head to the Senate floor where it only takes a simple majority to confirm him as head of the BLM.
