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Native Vote 2024. MILWAUKEE, Wisc. — Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) said on Wednesday she thinks she should be the secretary of the Interior in the Trump administration if he is elected this November.

Boebert who happened to be walking by the Native America Calling booth during a live broadcast from the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She stopped and provided an impromptu interview. 

Shawn Griswold from Source NM asked her who she thinks should be the new secretary of the Interior if Trump is elected in November.

“I think Lauren Boebert needs to be the secretary of the Interior,” Boebert responded without hesitation.

“Are you putting that out right now? Do you want to be the secretary of the Interior?” Griswold pressed the Colorado congresswoman. 

If Boebert’s wish comes true, she would replace current Interior Secretary Deb Haaland (Laguna Pueblo), who became the first Native American to serve in secretarial position within a presidential cabinet when tapped by President Joe Biden.

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“I think that this is actually one of the most important agencies within the federal government. Public lands are very dear to me. I spend a lot of time on tribal land with the chairman and tribal council of the Ute Tribe and Southern Ute in my district,” Boebert said.

Boebert told Griswold she supports tribal sovereignty. And she wants to move Bureau of Land Management offices out of Washington, D.C., and into other states, into regions.

“Rep. Boebert, if you’re in line for the Interior position within the Trump administration, I have to ask: what would be your viewpoints on the Antiquities Act?” Griswold asked.

“Oh, the Antiquities Act? Nope. So there’s been a lot of things through the Antiquities Act where we’ve had land grabs by the federal government,” Boebert responded.

“Like Bears Ears. Would you support the reduction of Bears Ears if you became secretary of the Interior,” Griswold asked. 

Bears Ear National Monument was expanded by Biden citing his power to do so as president through the Antiquities Act at the recommendation of Haaland.

“I do not want any land grabs.I do not want more wilderness areas. I don’t want these areas where we are unable to actually manage the land where we are farmers and ranchers can’t have grazing on the land where our waterways are locked up in wild and scenic rivers and things like that. This is our land for our people to use and use efficiently,” Boebert said. 

Boebert is an ardent Trump supporter and is considered a far-right conservative who voted against the certification of the 2020 presidential election. 

In the Colorado primary held on June 30, 2024, Boebert switched congressional districts so that she could run in a safer Republican district in the general election on November 5. 

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Levi Rickert
Author: Levi RickertEmail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Levi "Calm Before the Storm" Rickert (Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation) is the founder, publisher and editor of Native News Online. Rickert was awarded Best Column 2021 Native Media Award for the print/online category by the Native American Journalists Association. He serves on the advisory board of the Multicultural Media Correspondents Association. He can be reached at [email protected].