Albuquerque, NM (KKOB) — U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich says he cannot “in good faith” support Steve Pearce’s nomination to lead the Bureau of Land Management. Heinrich, the ranking member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, said Pearce’s past calls to shrink national monuments and sell off public lands conflict with the agency’s mission. At a February 25 committee hearing, Pearce said he would not recommend changes to the Organ Mountains–Desert Peaks National Monument and acknowledged he would not have the authority to sell public land without Congress. But he stopped short of disavowing earlier comments. The committee is expected to vote on his nomination Wednesday.
