In the Bull Trout case and numerous others, the Dept of Interior Deputy Assistant Secretary for Fish and Wildlife had to resign after an internal investigation rebuked her for breaking federal rules by leaking information about endangered species to affected industry goups. She was also accused of pressuring government scientists to make their research fit her policy goal.
Quote:
An Interior Department official accused of pressuring government scientists to make their research fit her policy goals has resigned.
Julie MacDonald, deputy assistant secretary for fish, wildlife and parks, submitted her resignation letter to Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne, a department spokesman said Tuesday.
MacDonald resigned a week before a House congressional oversight committee was to hold a hearing on accusations that she violated the Endangered Species Act, censored science and mistreated staff of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
MacDonald recently was rebuked by the department's inspector general, who told Congress in a report in March that she broke federal rules and should face punishment for leaking information about endangered species to private groups.
"As the inspector general showed, she bullied agency scientists, and she improperly released documents to industry attorneys and lobbyists, and so there's no question it's a good day for endangered species and for Fish and Wildlife Service biologists," said Noah Greenwald, Pacific Northwest representative of the Center for Biological Diversity.
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/nation...nterior02.html
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Information has recently come to light about interference by a Bush political appointee in decisions regarding protections for our nation's fish, plants and wildlife on the brink of extinction. Assistant Deputy Secretary for Fish, Wildlife and Parks Julie MacDonald often contacted field biologists directly to question them about their science and pressure them to change their decisions.
From the Inspector General’s report. MacDonald removed more than 80 percent of almost 300 miles of streams that were to be protected to help bull trout recover in the Northwest's Klamath River basin. In addition, at the behest of attorney Ronald Yokim, who represents several counties in Oregon, Julie MacDonald asked FWS biologists to respond to questions from the attorney. Responding to questions on proposed critical habitat posed by MacDonald, a FWS biologist stated: “Yokim is an attorney representing various interest groups. It appears Julie has shared our responses to her comments with Yokim, which have generated additional comments by Yokim. It seems to me that it would be innappropriate to essentially continue the public comment period (it is closed) by contacting and responding to his follow up questions/comments that he did not provide during the comment period…”
http://www.stopextinction.org/site/c..._MacDonald.htm
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Basically, she as an industry and interest group whore inside the DOI/FWS and was caught with dirty hands.