John,

Our nation’s public lands provide necessary habitat for robust wildlife populations. They offer us places to hike, fish, camp, bird watch, and connect with nature.

We entrust the federal government to carefully manage these lands so they will survive and thrive for generations to come. Unfortunately, President Trump has nominated a man to lead the Bureau of Land Management who doesn’t even believe in the idea of public lands. William Perry Pendley has spent a career advocating to get rid of public lands, and now the president has put him in charge of them. Fortunately, you can help put a stop to this.

Tell your senators to hold a swift hearing and then reject the nomination of William Perry Pendley to lead the Bureau of Land Management.

For the past year, Mr. Pendley has served as the de facto head of the Bureau of Land Management. During that time, he has offered up millions of acres of public lands to oil and gas companies in critical sage grouse habitat, key winter range for mule deer and elk or near lands that are cherished by outdoor enthusiasts from all across the country: Chaco Canyon in New Mexico, the Ruby Mountains in Nevada, Canyonlands and Arches in Utah, and the Great Sand Dunes in Colorado.

He has signed off on decades-long management plans for some areas that open up over 90% of the managed acres to oil and gas development. This is not responsible, balanced stewardship of our shared public lands. Prior to his tenure at the agency, Mr. Pendley spent his entire career fighting against public lands:

• He argued that public lands shouldn’t exist—that the federal government should sell them off.
• He fought against Native American communities in Montana and Arizona, on behalf of oil and gas and mining executives.
• He likened climate change to a unicorn.
• He made deeply troubling racist and bigoted comments.
• He voiced support for armed insurrection against the government in both Nevada and Oregon, where armed militants threatened the lives of public servants.

It is unconscionable to nominate someone who has repeatedly demonstrated outward hostility for public lands—and the agency staff who manage them—to lead the agency.

Tell your senators to vote against the nomination of William Perry Pendley, an anti-public lands zealot who doesn’t believe in the concept of public lands.

Just a few weeks ago, an overwhelming bipartisan majority of senators came together to affirm the importance of our nation’s public lands by passing the Great American Outdoors Act. Now it’s time to come together again to demonstrate unwavering commitment to these lands. Mr. Pendley is the wrong man to lead the agency that manages more than 240 million acres of wild public lands. Senate leaders should expedite the process for Mr. Pendley and reject his nomination.

Thank you for lending your voice today for wildlife and the lands they call home.