Back to Interior
It looks like the Democrats in the 110th Congress are going to need plenty of klieg lights the next two years. Yet another Bush appointee has been caught using her government position to push the administration agenda rather than perform her job. From an AP report in yesterday's Sacramento Bee:
A government official broke federal rules and should face punishment for leaking information about endangered species to private groups, the Interior Department's watchdog said.
The department's deputy assistant secretary for fish, wildlife and parks acknowledged releasing information that was not supposed to be made public to organizations such as the California Farm Bureau Federation and Pacific Legal Foundation, according to the agency's inspector general.
Environmentalists and other critics contend Julie MacDonald undermined federal endangered species protections. In the report by Earl Devaney, Interior Department officials describe MacDonald as a political appointee bent on manipulating science to fit her policy goals, which they said favor developers and industry.
The report said MacDonald:
-Removed more than 80 percent of almost 300 miles of streams that were to be protected to help bull trout recover in the Northwest's Klamath River basin.
-Tried to remove protections for a rare jumping mouse in the Rocky Mountains based on a questionable study.
-Pressured the Fish and Wildlife Service to alter findings on the Kootenai River sturgeon in Idaho and Montana so dam operations would not be harmed. [Emphasis added]
Ms. MacDonald's qualification for her job?
MacDonald is a hydraulic engineer with a master's degree in management but no background in natural sciences. She joined the Bush administration in July 2002 as a senior adviser for fish, wildlife and parks. She was promoted to deputy assistant secretary in 2004.
Well educated, yes. A degree suited to this position, such as in one of the biological sciences, not so much. Obviously her qualifications lay elsewhere. She clearly is quite adept at bullying the scientists at the department and at feeding sensitive information via email to friends at Chevron. Those two attributes make her ideal for this administration.
A government official broke federal rules and should face punishment for leaking information about endangered species to private groups, the Interior Department's watchdog said.
The department's deputy assistant secretary for fish, wildlife and parks acknowledged releasing information that was not supposed to be made public to organizations such as the California Farm Bureau Federation and Pacific Legal Foundation, according to the agency's inspector general.
Environmentalists and other critics contend Julie MacDonald undermined federal endangered species protections. In the report by Earl Devaney, Interior Department officials describe MacDonald as a political appointee bent on manipulating science to fit her policy goals, which they said favor developers and industry.
The report said MacDonald:
-Removed more than 80 percent of almost 300 miles of streams that were to be protected to help bull trout recover in the Northwest's Klamath River basin.
-Tried to remove protections for a rare jumping mouse in the Rocky Mountains based on a questionable study.
-Pressured the Fish and Wildlife Service to alter findings on the Kootenai River sturgeon in Idaho and Montana so dam operations would not be harmed. [Emphasis added]
Ms. MacDonald's qualification for her job?
MacDonald is a hydraulic engineer with a master's degree in management but no background in natural sciences. She joined the Bush administration in July 2002 as a senior adviser for fish, wildlife and parks. She was promoted to deputy assistant secretary in 2004.
Well educated, yes. A degree suited to this position, such as in one of the biological sciences, not so much. Obviously her qualifications lay elsewhere. She clearly is quite adept at bullying the scientists at the department and at feeding sensitive information via email to friends at Chevron. Those two attributes make her ideal for this administration.
Labels: Cronyism, Interior Department
posted by Diane at 3:39 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home