New head of natural resources committee worries environmentalists
Sunday January 26, 2003By MARK SHERMAN
Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) Richard Pombo was in just his third year in Congress when the new Republican leadership looked past more experienced lawmakers and handed him the task of rewriting the law to protect endangered species.
Now, after 10 years in office, the 42-year-old Republican from Tracy, Calif., is taking over a job usually reserved for a more seasoned lawmaker, chairmanship of the House Resources Committee. The panel oversees 700 million acres of public land, including national parks and forests, energy development, federal waterways and American Indian issues.
His quick rise to power inside an institution in which members often wait twice as long to run committees stems from two main points on which even his critics agree: He shares Republican leaders' sometimes reflexive opposition to governmental regulation, and he has been loyal to House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas.
``When you train your dog team and find out you've got a good one, it always makes you feel very good,'' said Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, a former Resources chairman and a member of the panel that chose Pombo.
Deb Callahan, president of the League of Conservation Voters, offered a different take on the same theme: ``He has been as consistently against environmental protection as you can be.''
Pombo has sponsored a series of bills that environmental groups say would have weakened the Endangered Species Act. He voted to allow drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and against limits on oil drilling off the coast of California. He has opposed increasing fuel economy standards. The League of Conservation Voters said Pombo cast environmentally friendly votes on just 9 percent of the key issues in the 107th Congress.
Pombo declined repeated requests for an interview. Spokesman Doug Heye said Pombo would do no interviews until he has had time to meet with other lawmakers on the committee.
Pombo's first task will be to repair relations with more senior Resources committee members, who objected to Pombo's selection.
His ascent came after western members rebelled over the prospect of a New Jersey moderate, Rep. James Saxton, taking over the panel. With former Chairman James Hansen, R-Utah, retiring, Saxton was next in line based on seniority. But Saxton, who has boasted to his constituents of his alliances with environmental groups, withdrew in face of the vehement western objections.
That cleared the way for a fight among several western Republicans to head the panel, including Pombo. The California congressman spent the past year campaigning aggressively and solidifying support among Westerners, and won the support of DeLay, a key factor in his victory. But there are bruised feelings on the committee.
``This is the guy DeLay wanted,'' said Rep. Joel Hefley, R-Colo., who also was in the running.
Pombo ``may do a perfectly fine job, but I think it's a real bad mistake to jump him over so many very capable people,'' Hefley said. ``I think it will create an enormous amount of ill-will among members of the committee. Many of them have grumbled to me already.''
Pombo is a fourth-generation cattle rancher, who, like his father, gave his children first names that begin with an R. Their initials, RP, match the family cattle brand.
Known for the cowboy hat he wears in his official Web site photo, Pombo remains active in the ranch when he is at home, Heye said. He is the only member of Congress with an active commercial driver's license, Heye said.
``And it's not unusual for him to use it when he's back in the district, loading up cattle on the truck,'' he said.
Little known beyond the environmental and property rights communities, Pombo came to Congress in 1993 as an outspoken opponent of most governmental regulation.
He defeated a moderate Republican in the 1992 primary for the 11th Congressional District by branding her the ``surefire choice of the hardline feminists.'' He is staunchly opposed to abortion rights.
His effort to overhaul the Endangered Species Act failed in the mid-1990s when moderate Republicans balked at the changes and critics cited the proposal as one more example of extreme policies following the Republican takeover of Congress in 1994.
He co-wrote a 1996 book, ``This Land is Our Land: How to End the War on Private Property,'' that former House Speaker Newt Gingrich called ``a keen analysis of the current threat to property rights posed by an overeager federal government.''
In some ways, the dynamic in the House is little changed from when Gingrich was speaker. Proposals to weaken environmental protections still will have to overcome the objections of moderate Republicans.
Environmental activists were especially chagrined by Pombo's selection.
``This is a pretty brutal statement to the moderate Republicans in the House caucus,'' said Carl Pope, executive director of the Sierra Club.
A hope among some environmentalists is that Pombo will moderate some of his views to reflect his new congressional district, which includes some San Francisco Bay area suburbs and less of the agricultural Central Valley. Tracy is between Stockton and Modesto.
But Elaine Shaw, Pombo's Democratic opponent last year, said Pombo already has won comfortably in the new district.
``Will he feel compelled to moderate his enviromental stance? I doubt it,'' said Shaw, who lost to Pombo 60 percent to 40 percent.
Pombo's allies said the congressman has risen so quickly in the House because he is unafraid to stand up to environmental groups.
``Richard was one of those people who has a dedication to a policy of logic when it comes to the environment and not just emotionalism,'' said Young, the lawmaker from Alaska.
He also has won praise, or at least a brief honeymoon, from some Democrats.
Rep. George Miller, D-Calif., one of the most vocal environmental advocates in the House, has not joined in the chorus of criticism.
Danny Weiss, Miller's chief of staff, said Miller was pleased a Californian will chair the committee because it will give more attention to the state's natural resources issues, especially water.
``Their differences are no secret,'' Weiss said, ``but he is someone George Miller can work with and has worked with.''
On the Net:
Rep. Richard Pombo: http://www.house.gov/pombo
League of Conservation Voters: http://www.lcv.org
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