Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke lashed out at Democrats and claimed they were "willfully" delaying confirmation of nominees for key posts in his department, The Hill reported.
"In my opinion, it's being slow-rolled, and it's not the White House," Zinke said after being asked by Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, about the slow pace of confirmations.
His comments came during a hearing of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, the Environment and Related Agencies.
"You did your part," he told Murkowski, noting others in Congress were slowing the process.
"That is a frustration, and I suspect it's being done willfully," Zinke said.
His frustration appears to center on the delay in confirming President Donald Trump's pick of David Bernhardt for deputy Interior secretary. Democrats have raised concerns about his past work in lobbying and his potential conflicts of interest.
Meanwhile, Zinke is reassigning dozens of top career officials in his department in an apparent major reorganization, The Washington Post reported.
The move could involve as many as 50 people, the newspaper said.
"The president signed an executive order to reorganize the federal government for the future and the secretary has been absolutely out front on that issue," Interior spokeswoman Heather Swift said.
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