[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 212 (Wednesday, December 8, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S9035-S9039]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          BIDEN ADMINISTRATION

  Mr. SULLIVAN. Madam President, today, I wanted to rise on the Senate 
floor and talk about a topic of utmost importance to my State, the 
great people I have the privilege of representing, and what the Biden 
administration is doing to good, hard-working American families in 
Alaska. It is what I call the anti-Alaska agenda, or the Biden 
administration's war on working families.
  I know that Americans all across the country have felt pain--economic 
pain, health pain, unfortunately, too many deaths as a result of the 
pandemic. Right now, we are seeing high energy prices and empty 
shelves. There has been a lot of suffering in America. We are a 
resilient people, however.
  My State, like many, has been hit very hard by the pandemic, 
particularly economically--our energy sector, our fishing sector, our 
tourism sector. And as we are coming out of this pandemic and everybody 
trying to work together--we all want growth and opportunity in 
America--we have now been hit with this--with this. This administration 
has issued, in its first 9 months in office, 20 Executive orders for 
Executive actions solely focused on Alaska.
  I came down to the floor 2 weeks ago to talk about this. It was 19 
then. You wait a week or 2 with the Biden administration in Alaska, and 
it is up to 20. I am sure they have a lot more ready to go. Twenty--
there is no State in America that is getting this kind of attention 
from the Biden administration, and we don't want it.
  What I am going to be continuing to ask my Senate colleagues to do--
and I am going to start with the President of the United States, who 
was a U.S. Senator for many years, decades--put yourself in the shoes 
of the people I represent.
  Let's imagine that a Republican administration comes into office and 
issues 20 Executive orders or Executive actions focused on Delaware--
tiny, little Delaware. The Senators from Delaware, including the former 
Senator, now-President, would be down on the floor of the U.S. Senate 
raising Cain, raising heck--I don't think I am allowed to swear here--
because of this, because they want to stick up for the people they 
represent. Imagine that.
  These Executive orders and actions are not some kind of simple 
abstractions; they are 20 orders and actions that go to the heart of 
what Alaskans do in terms of our economy: work, keeping food on the 
table, keeping lights on in their homes, paying the mortgage, keeping 
their kids in college, keeping their cultures thriving, keeping our 
communities from crumbling, particularly in rural Alaska. Some of the 
poorest communities in America is where this administration is 
targeting the people I represent.
  Very few people in my State--Democrat, Republican, Native, non-
Native--support this war against Alaska. This is not a partisan issue 
back home, and here is why: because real people, real families, real 
communities are being hurt--your fellow Americans. It has got to stop.
  I have demanded a meeting with the President and his team to just 
walk him through this.

[[Page S9036]]

  Mr. President, do you know what you are doing to one of your States 
that you are sworn to defend?
  These orders threaten the well-being of my entire State, but they 
particularly threaten the people who live in rural Alaska, who are 
dependent on the land and natural resources for so much of their 
economy, so much of their tax base.
  Here is the thing, I know what some of my colleagues or those who are 
watching are saying: Oh, it is just resource development issues in 
Alaska.
  Well, I will talk about that. It is some of that, but it is not just 
resource development issues that are happening here. Let me give you 
one that really burns me up.
  We had a bipartisan bill last year, last Congress, to provide what 
you will now call racial justice, racial equity, to Alaskan Native 
Vietnam veterans who served their country when most Americans were 
avoiding service and missed out, because they were overseas fighting 
for their Nation, on the opportunity to apply for what is called a land 
allotment. There was a deadline that happened, a complete injustice.

  Native Vietnam veterans coming home, not treated well because they 
are Native, not treated well because they are Vietnam veterans, and 
then told: Oh, by the way, the land you were supposed to get, you don't 
qualify.
  So we got a bill to pass to say that is an injustice. The previous 
administration signed it. They were implementing it. And when this 
administration came into office, the No. 1 issue I asked Secretary 
Haaland to commit to was to finish getting the Executive order out on 
these land allotments to implement this bipartisan bill because these 
Native Vietnam veterans aren't living that long.
  The administration delayed it for 2 years. Why? It has nothing do to 
with oil and gas or mining. Why? These Vietnam vets, many aren't going 
to live for 2 more years. They did it anyway.
  That is 1 of 20. Let me give you another one.
  We have had, down in southeast Alaska, the issue of the Tongass--that 
is the largest national forest in the country. Every elected official--
Governor, Senator, Democrat, Republican--in Alaska, the last 30 years, 
has pressed with the roadless rule, an exemption to the roadless rule, 
so we can have an economy there; roads for southeast communities. Every 
elected Governor or U.S. Senator, didn't matter the party, that is how 
important this was. We were able to get an exemption in the last 
administration. I appreciate what President Trump did on that.
  This administration comes in, and they reverse it. One of the 20. 
Guess how we, the Alaska delegation, found out about that reversal. A 
front-page story in the Washington Post. The Secretary of Agriculture 
wanted to brief the Washington Post and all the extreme environmental 
groups who wanted this before they let the people of Alaska or their 
representatives know. These are the examples.
  And, yes, the list also includes resource development projects. But 
here is the thing on that--I have a folder full of letters. These are 
letters from the elected leaders, Tribal leaders, borough leaders, 
Alaska Native Corp. leaders, Native leaders in my State--dozens of 
letters. Kaktovik Inupiat Corporation, Native village of Kaktovik--that 
is a Tribe--City of Utqiagvik, City of Atqasuk, City of Wainwright, 
Inupiaq Community of the Arctic Slope--that is another Tribe--the Voice 
of the Inupiat Arctic, these are all Alaskan Native leaders who live in 
the North Slope, some of whom live in the Arctic National Wildlife 
area. Every single one of these great leaders in my State, every one, 
was writing, even begging, this administration not to do this--not to 
do this. And they ignored them--they ignored them.
  This is a letter from Edward Rexford. He is the President of the 
Native Village of Kaktovik. He wrote to Secretary Deb Haaland after she 
suspended oil and gas leases in the ANWR, which we passed. What the 
Secretary did, in my view, was clearly illegal.
  Edward Rexford wrote: ``You have changed our future with one stroke 
of a pen without any explanation or consultation with us--the tribe 
that lives within the Coastal Plain.''
  His village, Kaktovik, is the only village within the coastal area of 
ANWR. That is it. There is no group of Americans who should have a 
greater voice in the development of this area than them. But they 
didn't even get a phone call--not a phone call, not consultation, 
Tribal consultation, which is required by law--none of it.
  That is all part of the 20 Executive orders and actions that I said 
are hurting people, hurting communities, hurting families, hurting 
Native cultures.
  I will tell you this: The Biden administration loves to talk about 
how they are committed to environmental justice and racial equity, but 
it is with a caveat.
  Here is the reality: They want to help unserved minority populations 
around the country. And I think this is a good goal, but it comes with 
a caveat. Unless, of course, they are indigenous people of Alaska, then 
the Biden administration targets them.
  Look at this folder. These are communities of color in my State, and 
all they do is get targeted, not helped; targeted, their economic 
opportunity. And then the things that most Americans take for granted 
that don't exist in these communities--clinics, flushed toilets, 
gymnasiums--all of that comes with economic opportunity. And when you 
shut it down, you are really hurting indigenous people in some of the 
most impoverished communities in the country. But I guess they seem OK 
with that.
  I want all of my Senate colleagues to do just a quick thought 
experiment. Imagine what it would be like, whether you are a Democrat 
or a Republican--but just think about it: A Democrat and a Republican 
administration comes in or you are a Republican and a Democrat 
administration comes in and changes the future of your State with a 
stroke of a pen, as Edward Rexford said, for the people you represent. 
Imagine an administration coming in with 20 Executive orders in 8 
months, shutting down your economy as you are trying to get out of a 
pandemic.
  Every Senator here would be mad. Every Senator here would be mad. And 
the one thing I very much enjoy about serving in this body is we are a 
collegial body. We have our differences, but I certainly have friends 
on both sides of the aisle, try to work with everybody, try to be 
respectful with everybody. The Presiding Officer and I chaired 
committees together, worked together on a lot of things.
  And here is the thing, if a Republican administration came into power 
and targeted one of my colleague's States with 20 Executive orders in 8 
months and whoever it was came to me and said: ``Hey, Dan, you know 
this is unfair. My constituents are really being attacked, really being 
hurt. Could you reach out to the Republican administration and say: 
Hey, come on. Tone it down. Geez, Louise, 20 Executive orders in one 
State,'' I would help, and I think almost every Senator here would 
help. That is what we do here.
  And I want to say that some of my Democratic colleagues here, when I 
have talked about this, when I have told them about this, when I have 
spoken about this, a number of them have come to me and said: ``Hey, 
Dan, give me the list. Give me the list of 20. Maybe I can't help you 
on every one of them, all of them. Maybe there are some I actually 
like. But I do want to try and help.''
  That is what has happened. That is what makes this body a good place. 
To those Senators, I really want to thank you. And I am going to ask 
for your help because I would do it for you.
  And this is unacceptable. Tens of thousands of people I represent are 
being hurt by the Federal Government, by the President and his White 
House. So I appreciate that from my colleagues. And this is, in 
general, how this body works. It makes this a special place.
  But I will say this. Not all Senators have been so gracious and 
senatorial and collegial. To the contrary, a few of my colleagues are 
helping lead the charge in the war on Alaska's working families. They 
seem to be putting a ton of effort into it themselves. I am not sure 
why, but they spend a lot of their time and energy focused on doing 
this: shutting down the Alaska economy, hurting working families, and 
ridiculously and absurdly acting as if they speak for the very people I 
am privileged to represent, as if they don't have enough to do in terms 
of helping their own constituents.

[[Page S9037]]

  So I am going to make an example and give an example of one. The 
leader of this small group is the senior Senator from New Mexico. Here 
is a sampling--three letters in the last year and a half he has 
written, signed, or led, focusing on shutting down Alaska's economy and 
hurting the great people I have the privilege of representing.
  Two of these letters deal with the 1002 area of the Arctic National 
Wildlife Refuge--controversial, no doubt. In 2017, we voted to provide 
the opportunity for development in that small area, what we call the 
1002 area. The President signed it. It came into law.
  Now, I know most of my colleagues on the Democratic side didn't agree 
with that. We have legislation we don't agree with. I accept that. I am 
still very good friends with so many.
  But, afterward, the senior Senator from New Mexico led letters to all 
the top banks in America and all the top insurance and financial 
institutions in America and didn't just say don't invest in the ANWR 
but said ``don't invest in any oil and gas development project in the 
Arctic.''
  What is that, the Arctic of America? That is my State.
  So now you have, as opposed to collegiality, a small group, led by 
this Senator, writing the biggest banks in America, the biggest 
financial institutions in America, trying to muscle them, saying: Don't 
invest anything in Alaska.
  That is not what this body is all about. I would never do that to a 
colleague. I would never write all the banks of America and say: Don't 
invest in poor communities, Native communities in New Mexico or in the 
New Mexico oil and gas industry. I wouldn't do that.
  Who does that?
  Well, unfortunately, a few--not many, a few--Senators are doing that.
  Absurdly, this Senator had the audacity, in one of his letters, to 
try to speak for the people I represent. He put in the letter: The 
people dependent on the Arctic Refuge don't want you to invest there.
  That is patently absurd. Just read the letters from all the people 
who actually live there, all the people who live there, who 
overwhelmingly want opportunities for oil and gas development and for 
jobs and economic opportunity.
  You would think, with all of New Mexico's problems, this Senator 
would focus on his own constituents.
  So I reached out to him and the few others who wrote these letters. I 
have reached out. I wrote my own letter to them saying: Hey, I was 
disappointed to see you do that. Why didn't you come talk to me? I 
wouldn't do that to you. And, by the way, what you are doing is really 
going to hurt my constituents.
  This is a letter I wrote to this Senator and a few others: I would 
appreciate the courtesy of talking about this before you go do it. You 
clearly don't understand the indigenous communities that I represent.
  I even provided a Wall Street Journal op-ed from the mayor of the 
North Slope Borough, Harry Brower, the Inupiaq mayor, who had a lot to 
say to the banks who weren't going to invest in his community.

  But I got no response. To the contrary, just a few months ago, this 
same Senator led a letter to the Secretary of the Interior, Deb 
Haaland, asking her to shut down a very important energy development in 
Alaska called the Willow Project. This is that letter--just about 4 
months ago.
  Let me talk about the Willow Project. The Willow Project is not in a 
controversial area; it is in the National Petroleum Reserve of Alaska, 
set aside by Congress decades ago for oil and gas development. Every 
Native group in Alaska supports this project, all the unions do, 2,000 
direct jobs, billions in revenues for some of the poorest communities 
in America, the lowest emissions of any major oil and gas development 
project in America.
  This is a huge win-win-win for everybody--not even controversial. Yet 
the senior Senator from New Mexico wrote Deb Haaland saying: Shut down 
the Willow Project in Alaska.
  Why is he doing this, literally trying to kill thousands of Alaskan 
jobs and impoverish Alaska Native communities?
  Do the people in New Mexico know that their senior Senator spends so 
much time trying to give Alaska oil and gas workers pink slips and 
impoverish Native communities? I wonder. I wonder.
  I thought, for just a moment, maybe I should do something against New 
Mexico, but then I was like, no; you know what, that is not my style. I 
wouldn't want to hurt New Mexico oil and gas workers or Native 
communities. They are all great Americans, I am sure. We are a great 
country. I wouldn't want to target them the way this Senator is 
targeting my State, trying to hurt thousands of Alaskan working 
families.
  And it should be emphasized and I want to emphasize, that is not how 
we work here. That is not what I have seen in my almost 7 years in the 
U.S. Senate, Senators trying to attack other Senators' States, 
specifically focusing on hurting working families.
  The vast majority of the Senators I know wouldn't do that at all. 
That is not how business is conducted here in the U.S. Senate. To the 
contrary, most of us generally try to help each other. We don't always 
agree; that is for sure. But particularly when States have unique 
challenges that could hurt their citizens, when my colleagues would 
come to me, ``Hey, Dan, can you help out on this,'' I usually try to 
help. But I certainly don't go on offense and try to hurt like this 
administration is doing and the senior Senator from New Mexico.
  But I thought the better course to fight back--because I am going to 
fight back, OK. I am going to fight back. These are my constituents who 
are hurting. The better course to fight back against these attacks on 
Alaskan working families was not to try to hurt New Mexicans but just 
show this, the rank hypocrisy of what the senior Senator is actually 
doing and saying.
  One of his main reasons, in this latest letter, to shut down Alaska, 
in trying to deny Federal permits for the Willow oil and gas project, 
is to ``achieve climate goals.'' OK? That is in his letter to Deb 
Haaland.
  But if you do just a little digging, this Senator seems fine with 
trying to achieve these goals on the backs of Alaskan workers and 
Alaska Natives but not on his own constituents, not on the backs of his 
own constituents--to the contrary.
  Guess which State in America has gotten way more Federal oil and gas 
drilling permits than any other State in the country--guess which one. 
It is certainly not Alaska. It happens to be New Mexico. It just so 
happens to be New Mexico.
  Guess where the Secretary of the Interior is from. New Mexico. Hmm. 
Is that a coincidence? I wonder, in their frequent phone calls, when 
they talk about concerns of climate and shutting down oil and gas in 
Alaska, if shutting down oil and gas in New Mexico ever comes up.
  I am pretty sure it doesn't. How do I know that? Because close to 
half of all oil and gas drilling permits issued by the Department of 
the Interior, by New Mexican Deb Haaland, in 2021 have gone to one 
State. What State is that? New Mexico--2,286 Federal oil and gas 
drilling permits; almost half of all the permits in the country to one 
State.
  So here is the bottom line. Here is their view. Shut down Alaska, 
hurt working families in Alaska, supposedly, to help America's climate 
goals, but then quietly say ``drill, baby, drill'' in New Mexico, with 
more permits by far than any other State in the country--almost 2,300. 
If that is not rank hypocrisy, I don't know what is.
  So I am going to start asking questions about this and, by the way, 
so should the press. I sure hope our friends in the press think that, 
hmm, there is something a little strange going on here. Clearly, there 
is hypocrisy happening. But, you know, that happens here occasionally--
or maybe more than occasionally. But is there anything else going on?
  And I hope the press in New Mexico ask their senior Senator why he is 
so darn focused on hurting the good people of Alaska--because I 
wouldn't do that to New Mexican oil and gas workers or New Mexican 
Native communities.
  And finally, I am going to ask questions in another area. The Biden 
administration is clearly trying to shut down my State. It is there for 
everybody to see. Everybody back home

[[Page S9038]]

knows it. But here is the thing. They can't do it illegally, and they 
can't do it unethically. And right now there is strong evidence that 
they are doing just that.
  What do I mean? Today, I sent this letter that I would like to be 
printed in the Record to the inspector general of the Department of the 
Interior.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

     Hon. Mark Lee Greenblatt,
     Inspector General, U.S. Department of the Interior, 
         Washington, DC.
       Inspector General Greenblatt, I write to express my deep 
     concern and to request relevant materials related to several 
     Department of Interior (DOI) appointees that are utilizing 
     their government positions to work on matters directly and 
     substantially related to their previous clients or employers 
     to the benefit of these entities. These actions raise dire 
     conflicts of interest and questions as to these appointees' 
     impartiality under Executive Order 13989 and related United 
     States ethics laws. These individuals have made key decisions 
     to overturn, review, and delay resource development projects 
     and land management plans in Alaska that they and their 
     former employers or clients were actively opposing prior to 
     their appointments. I ask that you supply all relevant 
     information requested below so we may have a full 
     understanding of these appointees apparent and likely 
     conflicts of interest. I further ask that your office 
     consider opening an ethics investigation into the work of 
     these appointees.
       Executive Order 13989 requires all appointees to sign a 
     pledge to ``not for a period of 2 years from the date of 
     [their] appointment participate in any particular matter 
     involving specific parties that is directly and substantially 
     related to [their] former employer or former clients, 
     including regulations and contracts.'' Beyond the E.O., 5 CFR 
     Sec. 2635.502(a)(2) requires appointees to consult with 
     ethics officials and receive approval prior to participating 
     personally and substantially in a matter where a reasonable 
     person with knowledge of the relevant facts would question 
     their impartiality. It has come to my attention that such 
     apparent conflicts of interest certainly exist for the 
     political appointees discussed below and to the best of my 
     knowledge none have received the requisite approval as 
     required by federal law and regulation.
       Ms. Nada Culver currently serves as the Deputy Director of 
     Policy and Programs at the Bureau of Land Management. Prior 
     to her appointment, she worked as Vice President, Public 
     Lands and Senior Policy Counsel at the National Audubon 
     Society and served as the Senior Counsel and Senior Director 
     of Policy and Planning at the Wilderness Society. The Audubon 
     Society was engaged in petitions and lawsuits to halt five 
     Public Land Orders affecting Alaska signed by the Secretary 
     of Interior under the last administration, challenges to the 
     National Petroleum Reserve Alaska (NPR-A) 2020 Integrated 
     Activity Plan (IAP), Environmental Impact Statement on the 
     Willow Projects, challenges to the Arctic National Wildlife 
     Refuge oil and gas leasing program, and the Ambler Road 
     project. It has come to my attention that Ms. Culver has been 
     personally and substantially involved in decisions at the DOI 
     related to delaying PLOs, announcing reviews of the IAP, the 
     Ambler Road project, and the 1002 leasing program. Ms. 
     Culvers impartiality on these matters is plainly 
     questionable, and again her involvement on these issues 
     likely violates ethics laws and regulations.
       Prior to her appointment, Ms. Natalie Landreth, presently 
     Deputy Solicitor for Lands, worked for the Native American 
     Rights Fund (NARF). In this position Ms. Landreth counseled 
     and represented NARF in comments and petitions on various 
     projects and management plans under consideration by DOI, 
     including the EIS for the oil and gas leasing program in the 
     1002 Area and the Willow project. In addition, she counseled 
     an Alaska tribal organization as they sought to prevent the 
     development of the Ambler Road project, which the DOJ, at 
     DOI's behest, moved to stay for further review of the 
     project, in line with petitions from this same organization. 
     NARF's aggressive opposition towards, and request for further 
     review of, a multitude of development projects now currently 
     being reviewed by the DOI raises serious concerns now that 
     their former staff attorney, Ms. Landreth, is a part of the 
     team conducting those very reviews. Since her appointment, it 
     has come to my attention that Ms. Landreth has been directly 
     and substantially involved in the DOI decisions concerning 
     these projects, advancing NARFs agenda without approval from 
     ethics officials.
       Prior to her appointment as Deputy Assistant Secretary for 
     Land and Mineral Management, Ms. Laura Daniel Davis worked 
     for the National Wildlife Federation (NWF). As Chief of 
     Policy and Advocacy, Ms. Davis oversaw NWF's campaign to 
     reverse the 1002 Area lease sale order included in the 2017 
     Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. NWF also pursued a strategic campaign 
     to invalidate the painstaking work of the DOI on the NPR-A 
     2020 IAP. Now, in a position of public trust, Ms. Davis has 
     advanced her former employers goals--recalling and reviewing 
     the IAP. Any reasonable person would at the very least 
     perceive a conflict of interest if not outright malfeasance 
     in Ms. Davis invalidating the finalized 2020 IAP as her 
     former employer has advocated for, especially in the absence 
     of an ethics approval.
       Finally, Robert L. Anderson, formerly Principal Deputy 
     Solicitor for the Department of Interior, and now Solicitor 
     of the Department of the Interior, was previously the 
     director of the Native American Law Center at the University 
     of Washington School of Law and a staff attorney for NARF. 
     Mr. Anderson was instrumental in establishing the NARF 
     Anchorage Office that now consistently opposes and challenges 
     any and all resource development in Alaska. Mr. Anderson 
     himself has authored a number of articles detailing his 
     personal disdain for the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act 
     (ANCSA) and natural resource development. After consistently 
     denouncing the DOI in its handling of tribal and Alaska 
     Native issues, Mr. Anderson has now been appointed as the 
     DOI's chief advocate. The DOI has numerous responsibilities 
     under ANCSA and oversees resource development in much of 
     Alaska. Any reasonable person that has read Mr. Anderson's 
     works would certainly question his impartiality and ability 
     to effectively represent the Department he has long decried.
       With such direct and substantial conflicts of interests 
     being ignored, the positions of their former employers and 
     clients are being advanced through a subversion of unbiased 
     analysis, constituting arbitrary and capricious actions, 
     fraud, waste, and abuse, and violation of federal ethics laws 
     and regulations. To the best of my knowledge, none of these 
     appointees have received a waiver from EO 13989 or 5 CFR 
     Sec. 2635.502(a)(2) making their violations not only 
     unethical but clearly illegal. When such behavior rears its 
     head there is a responsibility to the public to investigate 
     and expose every improper action taken. The American people 
     expect, and the law demands, impartial decision making by 
     those privileged to serve in the U.S. government. None of 
     these individuals--as relates to decisions made about 
     Alaska--appear to be abiding by the law.
       For that reason, I am requesting the following documents 
     within the next 30 days:
       Copies of the signed and dated ethics pledge for each of 
     the above listed officials;
       Any and all communications and documentation concerning 
     ethics consultations and waivers issued to the officials 
     discussed above;
       Any and all recusals made by the above listed officials;
       All internal communications (including Microsoft Teams 
     chats and texts from personal cell phones) concerning the re-
     opening of the NPRA IAP to, from, and amongst the above 
     listed officials and the White House;
       Any and all communications between the above listed 
     officials and their former employers and clients since their 
     appointments (including Microsoft Teams chats and texts from 
     communications devices);
       Any and all communications and opinions to and from the 
     Solicitor's Office concerning the legal sufficiency of the 
     NPR-A IAP and the grounds for re-opening it (including 
     Microsoft Teams chats and texts from communications devices);
       A timeline of the conversations and decisions made at the 
     Department of the Interior and among its officials that led 
     to the review of the NPRA IAP, the 1002 leasing program, 
     Ambler Road project, and the delay of the five PLOs;
       A detailed explanation of the purpose and need for re-
     opening the NPRA IAP that pinpoints any perceived 
     insufficiencies;
       Any and all records of tribal consultations done in 
     connection with the decision to re-open the NPRA IAP 
     (including Microsoft Teams chats and texts from 
     communications devices);
       Public service demands an objective duty to the nation 
     above all else. Government officials have a duty to serve the 
     people and uphold the law they have been entrusted to 
     execute. An impartial administration of the law is essential 
     to safeguarding our democratic values and must never concede 
     to private agendas. I am deeply troubled by the disdain these 
     officials have demonstrated for ethics rules and the 
     institutional damage such disregard has caused. Moreover, I 
     have raised these issues directly with Secretary Haaland and 
     Solicitor Anderson, but have been ignored. Finally, almost 
     all the likely unethical decisions at issue here are focused 
     on shutting down responsible resource development in Alaska, 
     hurting working families throughout my great state. For that 
     reason, I will work tirelessly to bring the full extent of 
     these unlawful improprieties to light.
  Mr. SULLIVAN. Here is what I am asking in this letter. There is very 
strong evidence that at least four senior political appointees at the 
Department of the Interior who have been involved in many of these 20 
Executive orders and Executive actions shutting down my State were 
actually, in their previous jobs, working on the very same issues and 
advocating for the very same outcome--meaning they are working with a 
special interest group to say shut down the Willow Project.
  And then when it came to the Interior, they are working on whether or 
not to shut down the Willow Project. Now, most of us know, if that is 
true, that is clearly illegal and clearly unethical.
  We have documented this letter--four senior Department of the 
Interior officials, all of whom who are trying to

[[Page S9039]]

shut down my State--and I think there is strong evidence that they are 
violating ethics laws and violating the law. So I have asked for a 
detailed investigation by the Department of the Interior Inspector 
General into whether or not these individuals have violated Federal 
ethics laws in their quest to hurt working families in my State.
  Let me conclude with this. I am a supporter of responsible resource 
development in America of all of the above: energy, wind, solar, oil--
in every part of our great country, in Alaska, of course, in New 
Mexico--all across our great land. And I am a supporter of the great 
men and women who do this in Alaska and New Mexico and Texas and North 
Dakota.
  What is happening in my State right now, this is just wrong, and I am 
going to fight. And any other Senator who would be going through what 
my State is going through, with your constituents being harmed, you 
would be down on the floor fighting, too.
  The vast majority of the U.S. Senators here--Democrats and 
Republicans--I think deep down in their hearts know that this is just 
wrong. You don't come in with a new administration and say, Hey, let me 
target one State and beat the heck out of their working families. It is 
just wrong.
  And I am hopeful that my colleagues here--and I am asking them 
because we need the help. I have great people I represent--proud, tough 
people, but I can't fight the whole damn Federal Government when they 
are focused on shutting you down. So I am hopeful that my colleagues--
all of my colleagues; I will share the list of the 20--that you can 
help me get the Biden administration and some misguided hypocritical 
U.S. Senators to enact a cease-fire in their war on working families 
and Native communities in the great State of Alaska.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader.

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