Senate votes 68-31 to confirm Zinke as secretary of Interior

WASHINGTON — Montana Rep. Ryan Zinke won Senate confirmation Wednesday as President Donald Trump’s Interior secretary, giving him responsibility for overseeing the nation’s 400 million acres of public land, mostly in the West.

The Republican-controlled Senate approved the nomination 68-31 as 16 Democrats and one independent joined with 51 Republicans to support the choice. Several Democrats from Western states as well as those facing tough reelections next year, including Montana’s Jon Tester, Indiana’s Joe Donnelly and Joe Manchin of West Virginia, voted for Zinke.

Zinke, 55, a former Navy SEAL and Montana state senator, resigned as a delegate to the Republican National Convention last year to protest the GOP’s position in favor of land transfers to state or private groups.

Still, his stance on public lands has come into question in recent weeks after he voted in favor of a House rule that would allow federal land transfers to be considered cost-free and budget-neutral, making it easier for drilling and development. Zinke, a Republican in his second term as Montana’s sole House member, told senators at a January hearing that federal land management should be done under a multiple-use model that allows hiking, hunting, fishing and camping along with harvesting timber, mining for coal and drilling for oil and natural gas.

Zinke also pledged to tackle a $12 billion backlog in maintenance and repair at national parks and stand firm against attempts to sell, give away or transfer federal lands.