Mike Thompson Still on Obama's Short List for Interior Secretary

by Dan Bacher

Representative Mike Thompson is still the "top contender" for the position of Secretary of Interior in President-Elect Barrack Obama's cabinet, according to an article by Thadeus Greenson in today's Eureka Times Standard.

"The Oregonian reported Monday that the rumor mill was 'humming' that Obama would pick Thompson for interior secretary, while the Associated Press had only Thompson and Arizona Congressman Raul Grijalva on its list of candidates for the position," the article stated. "Speculation seems to be mounting, according to a number of papers, that Obama will name his energy and environmental teams by the end of the week."

The Klamath Riverkeeper is the latest organization to back Thompson for the Interior post. The group joined the Karuk Tribe, the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations (PCFFA) and the nation's leading fish and wildlife conservation organizations in sending Obama a letter of support for Thompson on Wednesday.

"Congressman Mike Thompson has been deeply committed to helping Klamath communities work toward solutions to the Klamath Crisis," according to a letter to Obama signed by Erica Terence, Riverkeeper, Scott Harding, Executive Director, and Malena Marvin, Outreach & Science Director. "He was instrumental in bringing the Klamath into the national spotlight, and he has continued to actively support efforts to restore the river. Congressman Thompson has exemplified this leadership style by bringing a few of the 70,000 salmon killed in the Bush Administration’s now-infamous 2001 Klamath fish kill back to Washington D.C. to show lawmakers the actual impacts of the Department of the Interior’s actions."

The Klamath River was once the third most productive salmon system in the lower 48 states, just after the Columbia and Sacramento rivers. Now, due in large part to PacifiCorp's fish-killing dams that block passage to 300 miles of upstream habitat, the Klamath has just 10% of its historic runs of ocean-going salmon. This has resulted in increasing fishing closures and economic hardship for coastal, river and tribal communities in recent years.

"Urgent action is needed to solve the 'Klamath Crisis' and restore the river that supports tribes, commercial fishing families, and rural communities in southern Oregon and northern California," the letter continued. "Many stakeholders are working hard to find solutions, and we need top-level environmental leadership that can hit the ground running on this issue. We heartily urge you to appoint Congressman Thompson as your new Secretary of the Interior."

California Representatives George Miller and Anna Eshoo are also backing Thompson for the Interior post. The Interior Secretary is one of the nation's key environmental posts, since he/she is charged with overseeing the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Geological Survey and National Parks Service.

Other conservation organizations are supporting the appointment of Representative Raul Grijalva (D-Z) for the Interior post. A support letter signed by representatives of 106 groups from throughout the U.S. was sent to President-elect Obama and released by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) on Monday. Rep. Grijalva now chairs the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands that has jurisdiction over Interior Department matters. Scientists, Indian Tribes and Latino organizations are also backing Grijalva.