Ethics and Policy Should Stop Haaland Nomination as Secretary of the Interior

Nearly 100 leaders of the Conservative Action Project issued a statement opposing the

nomination of Representative Deb Haaland (D-NM) to serve as Secretary of the Interior.

The statement details the many policy reasons for opposing Haaland’s nomination, but there are also her ever-changing financial disclosure forms and the ethical questions they raise to be considered as well.

As John Solomon reported for Just the News, Haaland has now offered a third account to House ethics officials about how much she earned the year she first won her congressional seat.

As her cabinet nomination wound its way through the Senate confirmation process, Haaland quietly filed a second amendment to her legally required congressional financial disclosure report, eliminating more than $40,000 in income she previously claimed she earned in 2018.

The new report reports her total earnings in 2018 were only $4,000, even as she traveled the country and New Mexico campaigning for Congress and carried a student loan debt of between $15,000 and $50,000 that dates to 2006.

To put that into perspective, the federal poverty level for a single-person household in 2018 was $12,140, or about three times the amount she now claims she lived on.

The new report also changes the sources of the income she claimed she received in 2018, dropping entirely one source of salary she claimed from a tribal casino, drastically reducing another and adding a previously undeclared retirement account.

The changes, according to congressional sources, have raised two questions:

1. How did Haaland live on just $4,000 for an entire a year in which she ran for Congress, which involved traveling to hotels and events?

2. Did Haaland accurately account for her income on her federal and state tax returns, given that she has given three separate accountings for her income on her congressional ethics report for 2018? Ordinarily, candidates consult their tax returns when filling out the forms.

"Filing accurate personal financial disclosure reports is critically important to our system of checks and balances. Biden nominees should be treated the same as Trump nominees. Questions about this must be asked and answered before a vote takes place," Citizens United President David Bossie told Just the News.

Added Tom Fitton, president of Judicial Watch: "Ethics forms, when used fairly, help alert the public (and Senators) to any major red flags. A significant revision of an ethics form as it relates to income sources is unusual and a red flag.”

Here’s the text of the Conservative Action Project’s statement opposing the nomination of Deb Haaland to serve as Secretary of the Interior.

Given her opposition to American energy independence, Haaland’s ethics problems should be the straw that breaks the camel’s back. We urge conservatives to call the toll-free Capitol Switchboard (1-866-220-0044) to tell their Senators they must get answers to Halland’s ever-changing financial disclosures before bringing her nomination to the Floor, let alone vote AYE.

March 9, 2021

Washington, DC

Conservatives urge the Senate to reject the nomination of Representative Deb Haaland (D-NM) to lead the Department of the Interior.

Haaland’s statements at her confirmation hearing acknowledging the important and continued role of fossil fuels in America’s energy grid belie a record which suggest she believes otherwise.

As a Member of the House of Representatives, Haaland is a cosponsor of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s (D-NY) Green New Deal – a proposal which not only seeks the elimination of fossil fuels entirely, but envisions a wholesale re-creation of the American economy.

Haaland is also the principal sponsor of the “Thirty by Thirty” resolution, which seeks to federalize 30 percent of the country’s ocean and land as a means toward addressing climate change, and has been a vocal proponent of permanently banning the practice of fracking.

Despite giving lip service to the importance of fossil fuels – America’s largest source of energy – Haaland has said she supports President Biden’s decision to shut down the Keystone XL Pipeline.

Many of Haaland’s positions and statements have indicated she is to the left of even the Biden administration – and would likely push the agenda even further should she be confirmed.

At a time where both jobs and the stability of our energy supply are both of paramount importance, it is clear that Rep. Haaland will take the Department of the Interior in a more ideological direction than a measured and thoughtful one. We urge the Senate to reject her nomination.

(Affiliations for identification purposes only)

The Honorable Edwin Meese III

Attorney General

President Ronald Reagan (1985-1988)

Alfred S. Regnery

Chairman, Conservative Action Project

President, Republic Book Publishers

The Honorable Jim DeMint

Chairman, Conservative Partnership Institute

Member, US Senate (SC 2005-2013)

Kelly J. Shackelford, Esq.

Chairman, CNP Action, Inc.

President and CEO, First Liberty Institute

The Honorable Becky Norton Dunlop

White House Advisor

President Ronald Reagan (1981-1985)

Jenny Beth Martin

Chairman

Tea Party Patriots Citizen Fund

Wesley Denton

Chief Operating Officer

Conservative Partnership Institute (CPI)

Mary Vought

Executive Director

Senate Conservatives Fund

The Honorable T. Kenneth Cribb, Jr.

Chief Domestic Advisor

President Ronald Reagan (1987-1988)

William L. Walton

President

Council for National Policy

The Honorable Tony Perkins

President

Family Research Council

The Honorable David McIntosh

President

Club for Growth

David N. Bossie

President

Citizens United

Richard Manning

President

Americans for Limited Government

James L. Martin

Founder/Chairman

60 Plus Association

Andresen Blom

President

Hawaiian Values

Gary Marx

President

The Concord Fund

C. Preston Noell III

President

Tradition, Family, Property, Inc.

Seton Motley

President

Less Government

Ron Pearson

Executive Director

Conservative Victory Fund

Elaine Donnelly

President

Center for Military Readiness

The Honorable Gary L. Bauer

President

American Values

The Honorable George K. Rasley Jr.

Managing Editor

ConservativeHQ.com

Thomas Pyle

President

American Energy Alliance

Mario Navarro da Costa

Director, Washington Bureau

Tradition, Family, Property

Tom DeWeese

President

American Policy Center

Paavo Ensio

Chairman

Universal Minerals Group

Judson Phillips

Founder

Tea Party Nation.

Robert Keith Fischer

Meeting Coordinator

Conservatives of Faith

Karladine Graves

Salt and Light Council

William Shaker

CEO

Washington Marking Group

Lewis K. Uhler

Founder and President

National Tax Limitation Committee

Steve Berger

Founding Pastor

Grace Chapel

Paul Gessing

President

Rio Grande Foundation

Penny Harrison

Executive Asst

Bennett International Group

Mark Bloom

Business Owner

Tekgeologik, LLC

Darrel W. Johnson

Owner

Attic Corp

Peggy Dau

Representative

IranAliveMinistries

Melvin Adams

President

Noah Webster educational foundation

Ed Bowen

Citizen and Veteran

Property Owner in National Park

William Dennison

Member

Property Rights Action Group

Ron Kliewer

President

Public Lands for the People

Eleanor Nicholas

Craig Rucker

President & Co-founder

Committee For A Constructive Tomorrow, CFACT

The Honorable Diana Denman

President

The Reagan Legacy Forum

Barbara S. Waddell

Retired

Let Us Pray Ministry, Inc.

Myron Ebell

Director, Center for Energy and Environment

Competitive Enterprise Institute

Ed Corrigan

Vice Chairman, Conservative Action Project

President & CEO, Conservative Partnership Institute

Rachel Bovard

Senior Director of Policy

Conservative Partnership Institute (CPI)

The Honorable J. Kenneth Blackwell

Chairman

Constitutional Congress, Inc.

The Honorable Donald Paul Hodel

U.S. Secretary of Energy (1982-1985)

U.S. Secretary of Interior (1985-1989)

L. Brent Bozell, III

Founder and President

Media Research Center

The Honorable Russ Vought

Director

Office of Management and Budget (2020-2021)

Lt. Gen. William G. Boykin (Ret.)

Executive Vice President

Family Research Council

The Honorable Tom DeLay

Former Majority Leader

US House of Representatives

Saulius "Saul" Anuzis

President

60 Plus Association

Kay R. Daly

President

Coalition for a Fair Judiciary

Phil Kerpen

President

American Commitment

Richard D. Hayes

Partner

Hayes, Berry, White & Vanzant, LLP

Amapola Hansberger

Founder and President

Legal Immigrants for America

Dr. Richard Rounsavelle

Trustee

MRC

Jay Mount

President

MDS Communications

Penna Dexter

Co-host

Point of View Radio

Joan Holt Lindsey

President

Lindsey Communications

Lee Beaman

CEO

Beaman Ventures

William W. Pascoe, III

Board Member

Tea Party Patriots Action

Floyd Brown

Founder

Western Journal

The Honorable Peter J. Thomas

Chairman

The Conservative Caucus

Tim Macy

Chairman

Gun Owners of America

Dr. Richard W. Scarborough

President

Recover America Now

The Honorable Mike Hill

Former Member

Florida State House

Joy Lamb

Grover Norquist

President

Americans for Tax Reform

Eunie Smith

President Elect

Eagle Forum

Khadine Ritter

Chairman

Eagle Forum of Ohio

Dean Nelson

Chairman

Frederick Douglass Foundation

Mat Staver

Chairman

Liberty Counsel Action

Allen Roth

President

Secure America Now

Marc Little

Executive Director

CURE America Action

Melissa Emery

Owner

ShortDrive Enterprises

Raymon Thompson

CEO

Thompson Group

Willes K. Lee

President

National Federation of Republican Assemblies

Richard G. Scurry

VP Business Development

14all.us

Randy M. Long

Founder

Long Business Advisors, LLC

Dr. Clive Roberson

CEO

Allergy and Immunology Associates

E. Calvin Beisner

President, Founder, and National Spokesman

Cornwall Alliance for the Stewardship of Creation

The Honorable Jennifer Fielder

CEO

American Lands Council

Bill Jensen

Broker

Key West Real Estate

• Biden nominees

• Biden administration

• Rep. Deb Haaland

• Secretary of the Interior

• Financial Disclosure Forms

• Ethical questions

• Senate Confirmation

• New Mexico

• David Bossie

• Tom Fitton

• Energy independence

• Fossil Fuels

• Green New Deal

• Thirty by thirty resolution

• fracking ban

• climate change

• Keystone Pipeline