Interior Department Watchdog Faults Zinke for Wife's Travel

(Bloomberg) -- Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke broke department policy by allowing his wife, Lolita, to travel with him in U.S. government vehicles, the agency’s inspector general concluded in a report.

The inspector general said in the report -- which was obtained by Bloomberg News on Thursday night -- that department lawyers had approved of travel by Lolita Zinke “and other individuals” in government vehicles, in spite of Interior Department policy. The report has not been released publicly.

The report also said that an unarmed Interior Department security detail traveled with the couple on an August 2017 vacation to Turkey and Greece, which cost the agency $25,000. The State Department balked at providing security because of concerns that the trip was not an official one.

The decision to provide security to the Zinkes on the vacation was made by a senior U.S. Park Police official and wasn’t specifically prohibited, the inspector general added.

The Zinkes have reimbursed the government for Lolita Zinke’s travel expenses, according to the report, but it did not provide further details.

Volunteer Request

In addition, Zinke asked department employees to look into making Lolita Zinke a “volunteer,” a designation that would have allowed her to travel at taxpayer expense, according to the report.

Zinke denied that his intention was to eliminate the requirement that the government be reimbursed for her travel -- and ultimately, she wasn’t granted the status after employees advised the secretary that making her a volunteer “could be perceived negatively,” the report said.

An Interior Department spokeswoman didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday night.

The report emerged as the department announced that its longtime acting inspector general, Mary Kendall, whose aggressive investigations have been a thorn in Zinke’s side, would keep her job after it was reported that she might be replaced.

Her office said other allegations against Zinke -- including that he requested for a government mobile phone for his wife and told employees to walk his dog -- were unfounded. Kendall has overseen the Zinke investigations.

Price and Pruitt

“Republicans have known about Secretary Zinke’s scandals for eighteen months and done nothing,” said Representative Raul Grijalva of Arizona, the top Democrat on the House Natural Resources Committee, which has jurisdiction over the Interior Department. “Putting Democrats in charge of Congress is the only way to stop these abuses.”

Two members of President Donald Trump’s cabinet have stepped down amid accusations of ethics violations.

Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt resigned in July after a deluge of damaging revelations about his spending, travel, and a condo rental deal that prompted some Republican lawmakers to distance themselves from him.

Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price’s use of private and military jets at taxpayer expense cost him his job in September 2017.

The inspector general’s report, expected to be released publicly next week, concludes one of more than 15 inquiries Zinke has faced or is facing -- making him the most investigated interior secretary in recent times, according to the Center for Western Priorities, a watchdog.

“This report shows Secretary Zinke’s dogged determination to use his office for personal gain,” said Jennifer Rokala, its executive director. “Secretary Zinke owes the American people an apology — and a refund.”

Outstanding investigations being conducted by the inspector general include Zinke’s involvement in a land deal with a property development group backed by Halliburton Co. Chairman David J. Lesar.

Ben Carson, the secretary for Housing and Urban Development, told his staff in an Oct. 12 email that Suzanne Israel Tufts, a political appointee who serves as assistant secretary of HUD’s Office of Administration, would be leaving the agency to become the acting inspector general at the Interior Department.

That announcement drew condemnation from Democrats, who termed it retribution against Mary Kendall, who’s served in that capacity for several years.

Heather Swift, a senior adviser to Zinke, said in a statement Thursday that Kendall remains in her post and there had never been a decision to move Tufts into the job.

“HUD sent out an email that had false information in it,” Swift said. “Ms. Tufts was referred to the Department by the White House as a potential candidate for a position in the Inspector General’s office. At the end of the day, she was not offered a job at Interior.”

To contact the reporter on this story: Ari Natter in Washington at anatter5@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Jon Morgan at jmorgan97@bloomberg.net, John Harney, Karen Leigh

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