Senate Panel OKs Norton for Interior

WASHINGTON —  Gale A. Norton’s nomination as Interior secretary won easy approval from a Senate committee Wednesday after Democrats on the panel served notice that they will be watching to make sure she keeps her promises to uphold environmental laws.

The 18-2 vote by the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee signaled sure confirmation for Norton, who had seemed likely to be one of President Bush’s most hotly opposed Cabinet selections. But she defused most of her Democratic critics with conciliatory answers during hearings last week to questions about her commitment to protecting the environment.

Still, her answers also meant that she would have a delicate balancing act in her new role. She would take the helm of the department at a time when mining and energy interests, as well as ranchers and recreational users, are eager to expand their access to public lands. Many of these interests poured money into Bush’s presidential campaign and are counting on new opportunities for mineral extraction, oil drilling, logging and snowmobiling.

The full Senate vote on her appointment is scheduled for Tuesday.

Norton’s reputation going into the hearings--as painted by environmentalists--suggested that she would lend strong support to such efforts. Now that she has struck a more moderate tone, her early actions as secretary would be under close scrutiny.

The challenges would be heightened by Bush’s desire to increase domestic energy production. And her actions would be particularly pertinent to the West, given the vast swaths of federally owned land in the region.

Most of the Democrats who voted for her Wednesday--including California Sen. Dianne Feinstein--said that Norton had successfully assured them she is a “passionate conservationist” and would enforce existing environmental laws, regardless of positions she has argued in the past.

The Democrats stressed that they remain skeptical.

“I have had serious doubts whether Ms. Norton is sufficiently sensitive to our natural resources,” said the panel’s ranking Democrat, Sen. Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico, in a statement echoed by Feinstein. “For over 20 years, she has championed positions that I believe are inconsistent with the responsibilities of the secretary of the Interior.”

But, he said, her answers during two days of hearings and in more than 224 written queries persuaded him that she will conserve public lands, enforce the Endangered Species Act and the Surface Mining Act and protect the environment for future generations.

“I take her at her word,” Bingaman said. “Her actions as secretary will ultimately speak louder than anything she has said.”

Nominee Shifts Views on Global Warming

Norton also backtracked from a 1997 statement that seemed to dismiss the threat of global warming. “There is beginning to be more of a consensus that global warming is occurring,” she said, while adding that disagreement continues over its causes and how to combat it.

An array of environmentalists, including some Republicans, opposed Norton, pointing to her record of favoring private property rights over conservation and fighting federal pollution control efforts.

Norton worked for the Interior Department under Secretary James G. Watt, who headed the department under President Reagan and was heavily criticized by environmentalists. More recently, as attorney general of Colorado, she argued that the Endangered Species Act was unconstitutional. As a private attorney, she was a registered lobbyist for NL Industries of Houston, a defendant in cases involving scores of Superfund sites and a dozen instances of children’s exposure to lead paint.

“After a career spent trying to dismantle laws protecting our National Parks, streams and wildlife, we’re skeptical about Norton’s sudden U-turn on these issues,” Sierra Club President Carl Pope said Wednesday. “Senators extracted from Norton a pledge to uphold the laws safeguarding our public lands, but we believe a lifetime of actions speak louder than two days of words.”

Eight Democrats joined all 10 Republicans on the committee in voting for Norton. Opposing her were Sens. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.).

Wyden said that Norton had “genuinely moved away” from some of her past positions, such as arguing that the Endangered Species Act is unconstitutional. But, he said, he remains troubled about damage she might do to the environment as Interior secretary.

“I reluctantly vote no. . . . I hope she proves me wrong,” he said.

Schumer said that Norton does not have “a balanced view” of conservation and development.

Feinstein, in explaining her vote, said of Norton: “I believe she does care [about protecting the environment]. And, I must say, I think some of the things said about her are simply not correct.”

Feinstein said she was pleased by the support Norton expressed for the 6-year-old state-federal process that is attempting to resolve disputes over water sent south from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Feinstein said that Norton agreed to appoint a top official to oversee the process.

Offshore Oil Drilling Stance Draws Support

Sen. Bob Graham (D-Fla.) said that he was comforted when Norton agreed in her testimony with Bush’s commitment to a moratorium on new leases for offshore oil drilling, a pledge that also heartened Feinstein.

Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) said that she was pleased by Norton’s promise to consult her and other regional lawmakers before deciding issues that will have a significant effect on salmon populations.

Summing up the reaction among the committee’s Democrats in the wake of such pledges, Sen. Daniel K. Akaka (D-Hawaii) said: “I hope the Gale Norton we see here is the Gale Norton we’ll see as Interior secretary.”