Fireworks as Secretary Deb Haaland goes before Congress
Channel: indianz
Date: 2023-04-19

A Republican lawmaker who was unable to derail Deb Haaland's historic nomination as Secretary of the Interior tried to get back at her at a hearing on Capitol Hill on April 19, 2023.

Rep. Pete Stauber (R-Minnesota) accused Secretary Haaland, who is the first Native person to lead the Department of the Interior, of failing to understand the facts regarding a controversial copper mine in Minnesota. He claimed that she had "no idea" what she was doing when she signed an order protecting the land from development.

But when Haaland, who is a citizen of the Pueblo of Laguna, attempted to explain her decision, Stauber's speaking volume got louder and louder. He was accused of "berating" the Secretary and of "hyperventilation" by Democrats on the House Committee on Natural Resources.

After a lengthy recess -- about 15 minutes -- Rep. Bruce Westerman (R-Arkansas), the new chairman of the committee, attempted to get the hearing back on track. Stauber did not apologize for his treatment of Haaland, instead insisting that his was merely acting passionately about an issue affecting his district in Minnesota.

"I just don't want anybody to misinterpret, maybe, my volume for my passion," Stauber said.

Tribes in Minnesota opposed the proposed Twin Metals Mine, which is located in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. The area also includes the 1854 Ceded Territory of the Chippewa Bands.

Photo of by Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness by Dan Pemstein (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
https://www.flickr.com/photos/-dbp-/16132918415/ 
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/

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