Watchdog and conservation groups called out former oil lobbyist and current Interior Secretary David Bernhardt Friday over the department’s attempt to give a “coveted” permanent water supply contract to one of Bernhardt’s ex-clients.
“Bernhardt might as well still work for his former lobbying firm, where he represented oil and gas, mining, and agribusiness interests for many years,” declared Public Citizen president Robert Weissman.
Weissman’s national advocacy group previously waged a campaign highlighting Bernhardt’s conflicts of interest, opposed his confirmation, and filed an ethics complaint demanding a department investigation into him.