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Senator urges confirmation of Gov. Doug Burgum for Interior, criticizes DOI leadership under Deb Haaland
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Summary
An unnamed senator urged the Senate to confirm Governor Doug Burgum as secretary of the Interior and sharply criticized the Department of the Interior under Secretary Deb Haaland, blaming agency policies for higher energy costs, housing constraints, wildfire risk and Colorado River strain.
An unnamed senator delivered a floor speech urging the Senate to confirm Governor Doug Burgum as Secretary of the Interior and criticized the Department of the Interior's recent policies under Secretary Deb Haaland, saying those policies have driven up costs and hampered domestic energy and land management.
The senator opened by saying Americans are "paying more and getting less" and singled out energy, housing and basic necessities as areas where rising costs are squeezing families and businesses. "Mister president, Americans are paying more and getting less for just about everything," the senator said.
Why it matters: The Department of the Interior oversees a large share of U.S. public lands and has authority over energy development, water rights and national parks. The speaker argued that those responsibilities mean DOI leadership strongly influences energy supplies, housing development on federal lands and wildfire risk in the West.
Key claims and examples: The senator said DOI "governs nearly 1 fifth of the land mass of the entire United States" and accused the agency of policies that "throttled domestic production" of energy and invited foreign suppliers to "fill the gap." On wildfires, the senator blamed "decades of federal neglect" and the refusal to pursue active forest management for turning forests into "kindling." He also described the Colorado River as "withering," faulting regulatory paralysis for failing to protect the basin.
The senator referenced legislation he calls the "Houses Act," saying the Department of the Interior could identify and unlock underutilized federal lands for development to help ease the housing shortage. He framed that bill as an example of how DOI could be used to expand housing access.
Direct appeal: The speech culminated in a nomination pitch. "It's time, mister president, for us to confirm governor Doug Burgum as the next secretary of the interior," the senator said, urging colleagues to "swiftly and resoundingly confirm" Burgum.
What was not decided: The remarks were an advocacy speech on the Senate floor; the transcript does not record any formal motion, committee action or roll-call vote on the nomination. There were no responses to the specific accusations recorded in this excerpt.
The senator's statements drew a through-line from DOI policy to local impacts: a Utah rancher losing grazing rights, a West Virginia miner facing regulation, an Arizona small-business owner struggling with energy costs, and a Wyoming farmer fighting for water. The speech closed with appeals to freedom and a final "Thank you, mister president."
