'Sagebrush rebel' William Perry Pendley embraces role heading BLM

...Few people have been involved with federal lands issues longer than Mr. Pendley, 74, who began as a staffer in 1976 for Sen. Clifford Hansen, Wyoming Republican. He went on to argue cases before the Supreme Court and write five books on “war on the West” themes. Still, it looked a few months ago as if his 30-year tenure as president of the Mountain States Legal Foundation in Denver would be his last act. Then Interior Secretary David Bernhardt called. On July 15, Mr. Pendley was sworn in as BLM deputy director of policy and programs. Two weeks later, the secretary signed an executive order giving Mr. Pendley the “authority of the director.” The order expires Sept. 30 and could be extended. Or the president could nominate a permanent director, which would require Senate confirmation. Whatever happens, Mr. Pendley plans to take advantage of the time he is given. He held a three-day meeting this week with state directors in Washington, but he also plans to “spend a lot of time in the West, going into the field offices, getting the lay of the land,” as well as advancing the relocation of about 300 staffers in Washington to 12 Western states. The plan was cheered by Western lawmakers, including Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, a Democrat, and Sen. Cory Gardner, a Republican, and slammed by others, notably Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton of the District of Columbia, but “I think it’s awesome. I think it’s great,” Mr. Pendley said. “Our frustration in the West is simply we’re dealing with a landlord who’s 2,000 miles away,” he said. “You just don’t understand situations without being on the ground. You just have such a better perspective. You can read all you want. You can listen to all the PowerPoints you want. You can have as many conference calls as you can plug into a day, but you don’t understand until you’ve got boots on the ground.”...MORE