Jonathon Berman, jonathon.berman@sierraclub.org
As he tries to boost his own profile, Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke is continuing to catch Trump’s ire. Last week, Axios first reported that Donald Trump was upset with Zinke over his brash -- and possibly illegal -- decision to reverse course on offshore drilling off Florida’s coast. Now, in an interview over the weekend, Trump spoke of his quick reversal of a Fish and Wildlife (an agency within Interior) decision to overturn the ban on importing elephant trophies, saying it was a terrible decision made by a “very high level government person.” In November, when Trump reversed the decision to lift the ban, he noted that he and Zinke would be the ones updating the public. This comment is now leading to the belief that it was the Interior Secretary Trump referenced in the interview.
“If even Donald Trump is embarrassed by Ryan Zinke, you know something is seriously wrong,” said Lena Moffitt, Director of the Our Wild America campaign. “Zinke’s inability to put his duties as Secretary above his personal agenda and ambitions continue to threaten America’s coasts, public lands, and public health and safety. It’s past time Trump fires Zinke for continuing to create unenforced errors plaguing an administration already mired in scandal.”
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