Press Releases

This week, members of the Congressional Western Caucus sent President-Elect Trump a letter encouraging him to appoint individuals who have direct experience working on Western issues to certain appointed positions that deeply impact the West. Namely, positions within the Departments of Agriculture and Interior, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Bureaus of Indian Affairs, Reclamation, and Land Management.

Congressional Western Caucus Chairman Paul A. Gosar, D.D.S. (AZ-04), Chairman Emeritus Steve Pearce (NM-02), and caucus member Congressman Chris Stewart (UT-02)  issued the following statements in response:

“It is crucial that President-Elect Trump identify and ultimately appoint people to key positions in his Administration who know the West. We have spent the last eight years fighting a constant uphill battle of burdensome and onerous regulations, agency overreach, unnecessary and duplicative bureaucratic red tape, and a general lack of administrative transparency by those who know little or nothing about the unique challenges facing the West. The time is now for real change and the Western Caucus looks forward to working with the incoming Administration to accomplish great victories for our communities,” said Chairman Paul Gosar.

“Western issues are very unique and are not well known unless you live in the West or have studied the issues extensively. Under the Obama Administration, the majority of positions that influence and impact the West were filled by individuals who simply wanted to push an agenda. As a result, Federal agencies ignored local input and created regulations and policies, which disenfranchised and harmed westerners. This has deteriorated the relationship between the people and the Federal government. I hope the incoming Administration takes us off this dangerous path by making it a priority to fill these positions with professionals who understand these issues and understand the importance of local cooperation,” said Chairman Emeritus Steve Pearce

Congressman Chris Stewart said, “For the last eight years, development of any kind in the West has been stifled as we’ve dealt with a political class that has never cared about our way of life. Our culture and paychecks are dependent on access and usage of our public lands, and it’s critical that appointees to the Department of Interior fight for Western issues.”

Background:

Click HERE to read the entire letter.

The letter was signed by 12 total Representatives including Chairman Paul Gosar D.D.S. (AZ-04), Chairman Emeritus Steve Pearce (NM-02), Rep. Chris Stewart (UT-02), Rep. Mark Amodei (NV-02), Rep. Scott Tipton (CO-03), Rep. Dan Newhouse (WA-04),  Rep. Jaime Herrera-Beutler (WA-04), Rep. Don Young (AK-At Large), Rep. Kevin Cramer (ND- At Large), Rep. Mike Simpson (ID-02), Rep. David Valadao (CA-21), and Rep. Tom McClintock (CA-04).