A New Presidente
It would appear we have a new President. This will
mean new appointments, new administrative policies and new legislative
initiatives. What affect will all this have on you?
First, we need to look at appointments to
Cabinet-level positions, agency heads and other subcabinet personnel.
The first place to look for clues is the folks
appointed to Biden’s transition teams, and the news there does not look
promising.
On the Interior Department transition team we see
representatives from the Everglades Foundation, Colorado River Sustainability
Campaign, Evergreen Foundation, Center For American Progress and various former
Obama appointees.
The team leader for the Council on Environmental
Quality (CEQ) is a representative from Earth, Energy and Democracy.
The team leader for the Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) is a representative from Earthjustice, joined by representatives
from the Sierra Club, Harvard Environmental and Energy Law Program and Grist
Magazine.
On the United States Department of Agriculture team we
find representatives from the Natural Resources Defense Council, Southern
Appalachian Wilderness Stewards, Good Food Institute, Foodcorps, and United
Food and Commercial Workers International Union.
Can we draw any conclusions from this? I don’t know
about you, but it seems very clear to me the enviro-progressives will have a
huge impact on the personnel and policies of the Biden Administration.
As I write this column, Biden has announced his
Cabinet nominations for the Departments of State, Treasury, Homeland Security,
and National Intelligence.
In addition, he has announced a new position, Special
Presidential Envoy for Climate. His nominee is John Kerry, the primary U.S.
negotiator for the Paris Accord while serving as Secretary of State in the
Obama Administration. The NY times says this appointment, “elevates the issue of climate change to the highest
echelons of government and marks it as an urgent national security threat.” Tod Stern, a former Obama official, says “John Kerry brings
unmatched stature, a record of being an effective, tireless and indefatigable
negotiator, a record of profound commitment to this issue and an understanding
of just what the speed and scale of the transformation needs to be.” And Kerry
himself says, “America will soon have a government that treats the climate
crisis as the urgent national security threat that it is.”
You might be thinking all this might be of interest to
the Denizens of DC, but probably won’t have that big of an impact on me or my
operation. Well, you better ask yourself the question, “what impact does my
raising beef or mutton on federal land have on climate change”? You may soon
have your answer. I suspect that in the near future, all government actions, no
matter how large or small, will be run through the gauntlet of a climate change
analysis.
By the time you read this we may know who the nominees
are to head Interior, USDA and the EPA. Right now all we have is speculation in
the media.
Three New Mexicans are reportedly being considered for
Secretary of Interior – Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich, and
representative Deb Haaland. Udall was considered the front runner by many
because of his long friendship with Biden. Plus there is the family tradition.
His father, Stewart Udall, was the Secretary of Interior during the Kennedy and
Johnson Administrations. More recently, though, Haaland has been endorsed by
those opposing the Keystone XL Pipeline, and more than 50 House Democrats are pushing Biden to select Haaland, a move
that would for the first time bring a Native American into the Cabinet. “Representative
Deb Haaland is eminently qualified to be Interior Secretary. She has been a
champion for our environment and public lands and has worked tirelessly to
improve the nation-to-nation relationship between the United States and Indian
tribes,” the lawmakers wrote in a letter to the transition team, noting their
ability to “make history by giving Native Americans a seat at the Cabinet table
for the first time.” Udall, who is leaving the Senate in
January, asserts that he is still in
the running for the role. “Like so many New Mexicans, I’m excited about the
vision of the incoming Biden-Harris administration and I am honored to be
considered for an opportunity to continue my public service” he told one
publication.
One thing is for sure – none of the three are renowned
for their support of livestock grazing on federal land.
We shall persevere, however, and I want to wish each
and every one of you a Merry Christmas and a Happy and Prosperous New Year.
Frank DuBois was the NM Secretary of
Agriculture from 1988 to 2003, is the author of a blog: The Westerner (www.thewesterner.blogspot.com)
and is the founder of The DuBois Rodeo Scholarship and The DuBois Western
Heritage Foundation
This column originally appeared in the December issues of The New Mexico Stockman and The Livestock Market Digest.
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