Arizona Republic, December 11, 2012

Raul Grijalva Great for Interior
By Linda Valdez

Arizona could wind up with another hometown kid in the Obama Cabinet if a coalition of 238 environmental groups have their way.

According to The Arizona Daily Star, the push is on make Democratic Rep. Raul Grijalva that next Interior secretary. There is also a petition on WhiteHouse.gov to get Grijalva in the position.

If his supporters are successful, Grijalva would would join Bruce Babbitt and Stewart Udall as Arizonans who have served as Interior secretary. Grijalva was mentioned as a candidate for the job four years ago. But the nod went to Ken Salazar, who has not been a big hit with environmentalists.

Grijalva has solid environmental credentials and a keen understanding of the need to give conservation an edge over exploitation of public land resources. 

He’d make a great head of Interior.

The Star’s Becky Pallack writes:

"The groups supporting Grijalva include conservation, Hispanic, recreation, animal welfare, religious, labor, youth, business and women’s groups.

"Congressman Grijalva has been a tireless and effective leader on conservation and land management issues faced by the Department of the Interior," the groups wrote in their letter to the president. "Congressman Grijalva has unparalleled expertise with Native Americans and Indian tribes, a strong understanding of border issues, a well-established and pragmatic conservation ethic, and valuable experience with a wide variety of funding challenges.

"We strongly believe Congressman Grijalva exemplifies the modern and forward-thinking vision of the Department of the Interior."

Among the local groups that signed in support of Grijalva are the Arizona Mining Reform Coalition, the Arizona Native Plant Society, the Arizona Wilderness Coalition, the Coalition for Sonoran Desert Protection, Don’t Waste Arizona, the Mount Graham Coalition, Save the Scenic Santa Ritas, the Sky Island Alliance, Sustainable Arizona and the Tucson Audubon Society.

Grijalva is a leading Democrat on the House Committee on Natural Resources and is the ranking member in the subcommittee on national parks, forests and public lands."

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This article originally appeared here.