To no one’s surprise, Donald Trump is stocking his incoming administration with personal loyalists and allies of the fossil fuel industry. If there have been any surprises, they have been the shockingly poor experience and qualifications of some key nominees. 

Let’s look first at two critical, high-profile positions dealing directly with the environment and natural resources: heads of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Interior Department.

Pro-Polluter Zeldin

Trump announced that he will nominate former Congressman Lee Zeldin to be the next EPA Administrator. The national League of Conservation Voters (LCV) issued a strong negative reaction to Zeldin’s nomination. “Trump made his anti-climate action, anti-environment agenda very clear during his first term and again during his 2024 campaign,” said LCV Senior Vice President for Government Affairs Tiernan Sittenfeld. “During the confirmation process, we would challenge Lee Zeldin to show how he would be better than Trump’s campaign promises or his own failing 14% environmental score if he wants to be charged with protecting the air we breathe, the water we drink, and finding solutions to climate change. The stakes for our climate and future generations could not be higher, and we’re all in to fight for our communities and defend the climate, clean energy, and environmental justice progress we have made.” 

Pro-Polluter Burgum

Trump also announced that he will nominate North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum to become the next Secretary of the Interior. “Billionaire Doug Burgum already demonstrated the lengths he’ll go when he helped organize the infamous dinner where Trump offered Big Oil executives their wishlist in exchange for $1 billion,” said Leah Donahey, LCV Senior Federal Advocacy Campaigns Director. “The Secretary of the Interior is charged with protecting the country’s most iconic, unspoiled, and treasured public lands while working with local and Indigenous communities. Instead of comparing Burgum to other Trump nominees, the question should be how much is Burgum willing to hand over to oil CEOs and other Big Polluters — all so they can pad their already record profits. If Burgum cares about our public lands, he will disavow the MAGA Project 2025 agenda and Trump’s extreme campaign to eliminate protections in order to ‘drill, drill, drill.’”  

Other Cabinet Posts

Also highly relevant to the interpretation and enforcement of laws protecting public health and the environment are two other key cabinet posts, Attorney General and Secretary of Health and Human Services.

One of Trump’s most shocking nominations is disgraced, recently resigned Congressman Matt Gaetz to become Attorney General. “Donald Trump has once again demonstrated profound contempt for the Constitution, the rule of law, civil rights, clean air and water, and the integrity of our institutions with his choice of Matt Gaetz  — whose 10% lifetime environmental score speaks for itself — for Attorney General,” said Doug Lindner, LCV Senior Director of Judiciary & Democracy. “Trump has a history of attempting to violently overthrow the government and he has repeatedly promised to abuse his power by ordering the Justice Department and military to persecute his political opponents. We cannot have a hyperpartisan, unqualified Attorney General overseeing environmental and other critical protections, as well as the FBI and all federal prosecutors, when Gaetz’s only true experience with law enforcement is being investigated himself.” 

Kennedy Nominated

Finally, there is Trump’s announced nominee to head the Department of Health & Human Services, anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. “RFK Jr. is a dangerous conspiracy theorist and science denier whose stated policies would be a disaster for the health and reproductive rights of our communities, our planet, and our future generations,” said Matthew Davis, LCV Vice President of Federal Policy and former EPA health scientist. “We’ve seen Kennedy time and time again spread misinformation about science, vaccines, and climate change in ways that are harmful for the health and safety of families in the U.S. and across the globe. With this nomination, Trump is again demonstrating that he will prioritize his MAGA allies instead of protecting public health and our environment.” 

Turning to the States

LCV and other organizations concerned with defending action on the climate crisis, environmental justice, and protection of the environment and public health will continue to ring alarms about these and other disastrous nominees for critical positions of public trust in the incoming presidential administration. Additionally, national organizations like LCV are doubling down on the work they do in states to continue climate progress and protect democracy and voting rights. We will continue to work with LCV and other national organizations to ensure all North Carolinians have access to clean air, clean water, and a part in the clean energy economy.

Help us do this work by becoming a sustaining donor today.