01.24.01

Statement of Senator Maria Cantwell Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Nomination of Gale Norton

I take very seriously, both as a senator and a citizen, the responsibility of the United States Senate to fulfill its constitutional duty to "advise and consent" on certain presidential nominations and, thus, carefully evaluate the qualifications of each nominee. I also respect the tradition of deference to the President in selecting his Cabinet members, as well as my democratic colleagues' pledge to avoid ideological litmus tests in these proceedings. I agree with these principles and I have used them as a guide in the nomination of Gale Norton.

The Secretary of the Interior is a position of great significance for the entire country and has an especially strong impact on my home state of Washington and the Northwest. This position allows significant discretion on many existing regulations and policies as well as input into new policies that will be pursued by President Bush. For these reasons, I, along with my colleagues, have attempted to ask direct questions about Ms. Norton's record and her willingness to uphold our environmental laws.

I appreciate Gale Norton's oral and written response to my questions regarding the Hanford Reach National Monument, Habitat Conservation Plans, and protecting the moratorium on oil and gas drilling off the Washington coast. I also applaud her statements that she will faithfully uphold and enforce our broader environmental laws, such as the Endangered Species Act, the National Environmental Policy Act, and the Supreme Court's interpretations of property rights. Lastly, I am encouraged by Gale Norton's own words on the role of the federal government to act on these matters, "I respect federal lands and support strong federal management of its properties...I will enforce the air, water, wilderness and endangered species protections embodied in federal law."

Ms. Norton made strong statements under an oath, for the record. I take these statements to be commitments to which I expect Ms. Norton and the Bush administration to adhere. More importantly, Ms. Norton will be bound to her word by the millions of citizens who care about our environment and wish to preserve our way of life, who wish to breath clean air, drink clean water, and enjoy our national parks. Ms. Norton's first duty is to live up to the commitments she has made to them, and to emphasize the importance of our national environmental policies to the many groups and employees who will act upon her direction. Without her passion and personal emphasis, the environmental priorities we have spoken of in this committee will remain mere words.

On that note, I will once again state my respect for the traditions and role of the Senate in the President's selection of his Cabinet. Using this lens, I cannot oppose the nomination of Gale Norton because I believe her statements for the record to be true and do not find her fundamentally unfit to perform the duties of Secretary of the Interior. I do, however, continue to have great concerns about her record, both as attorney general of Colorado and as a legal scholar and activist. In her appearance before this committee, however, she has distanced herself from many of her past convictions.

My decision to vote for her nomination has come only after a great deal of thought and reflection and only after hearing her commitments to this committee to enforce our nation's environmental laws, including the Endangered Species Act, the National Environmental Policy Act, and the Land and Water Conservation Fund. I also am reassured by her answers to my specific questions about the Hanford Reach National Monument and Habitat Conservation Plans, both of which she pledged to support. The many objections raised by environmental and civic activists about Ms. Norton's record are certainly valid and I share their criticism of her past policy views.

For this reason, I will be vigilant in observing Ms. Norton's decisions and her policies. I believe that the "western mentality" does not mean undertaking a legislative or administrative initiative to roll back our environmental laws. The Northwest will insist that environmental protection is a genuine priority and the people of Washington state will hold the Bush administration and Gale Norton to their word.

As our former Governor, Booth Gardner, has said, "Environmentalists make great ancestors." The people of Washington state have enjoyed a long line of tremendous ancestors, from all walks of life, and I know that they expect to live up to the traditions set by their predecessors. These issues are complex and varied, but I can assure Ms. Norton that we will not be confused as to the laws and values that she has sworn to uphold before this committee. I look forward to our work together and I am confident that Gale Norton will not abandon her commitments. I wish her well and I offer her my pledge to work together on these vital issues.