David Bernhardt

David Bernhardt, born on August seventeenth, nineteen sixty-nine, is a prominent American lawyer and politician who made significant contributions to the United States Department of the Interior. His career in public service began in two thousand one, and he quickly rose through the ranks, serving as the department's solicitor from two thousand six to two thousand nine and later as deputy secretary from two thousand seventeen to two thousand nineteen.

In April two thousand seventeen, President Donald Trump nominated Bernhardt to the position of deputy secretary of the interior, a role he was confirmed for by the U.S. Senate on July twenty-four, two thousand seventeen. He officially took office on August first, two thousand seventeen, and became acting secretary of the interior on January second, two thousand nineteen, following the resignation of Ryan Zinke.

Bernhardt's tenure as the fifty-third Secretary of the Interior began after his nomination in February two thousand nineteen, with confirmation occurring on April eleventh, two thousand nineteen. His extensive background as a lobbyist and natural resources attorney, particularly during his time at the Colorado law firm Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, has equipped him with a unique perspective on the intersection of law, policy, and environmental stewardship.