Elon Musk-linked aide gains sweeping control over U.S. Interior Department operations

A former oil executive with ties to Elon Musk now holds expansive authority to reshape operations at the Interior Department, raising alarms among conservationists and longtime federal employees.

Dino Grandoni and Maxine Joselow report for The Washington Post.

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In short:

• Interior Secretary Doug Burgum appointed Tyler Hassen, a Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) representative and ex-oil executive, to oversee a broad cost-cutting initiative across the department without Senate confirmation.
• Hassen and fellow DOGE aide Matt Luby are scrutinizing grants and contracts, seeking access to sensitive payroll and personnel systems, and pushing for the elimination of discretionary funding, including specific targeting of grants to Maine.
• Career officials have raised legal and procedural concerns about DOGE’s overreach, including attempts to remove an attorney who challenged their authority, while critics say the actions undermine the Interior Department’s mission to protect public lands and wildlife.

Key quote:

“If Doug Burgum doesn’t want this job, he should quit now.— Jennifer Rokala, executive director of the Center for Western Priorities

Why this matters:

The Interior Department oversees some of the nation’s most treasured natural resources, including national parks, endangered species habitats, and vast public lands. Its mission is inherently conservation-focused, but giving unchecked power to political appointees — especially those with ties to the fossil fuel industry — risks shifting that mission toward deregulation and privatization. The Department of Government Efficiency, though not a cabinet-level agency, is now deeply embedded in major environmental and public land agencies, prompting worries of political loyalty outweighing science or legal process.

Read more: Trump’s workforce cuts threaten climate protection in national parks