Interior Secretary Doug Burgum is facing mounting criticism from both federal prosecutors and his own staff, as the leadership of the Interior Department grapples with public disputes and internal turmoil. U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro moved to drop criminal charges against Olympic canoeist David Hearn on Friday, stating that damage to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool resulted from contractor installation failures and a rush to complete the project before Independence Day celebrations, not vandalism as Burgum had claimed.
In her court filing, Pirro said the Interior Department had provided “less than fulsome information at the outset of this case,” and that had the department been forthcoming, “the government would not have sought a grand jury indictment.” Burgum responded on social media, claiming his staff had “provided the U.S. Attorney’s office expert and eyewitness testimony to the damage done by vandals and provided every piece of evidence they asked for in the requested timeline detailing each area of damage at the pool.” The dispute marks a rare moment during Trump’s second term when an aide openly defied the president, who had championed the Reflecting Pool renovation and blamed vandals for the damage.
Beyond the public clash with Pirro, Burgum faces serious internal challenges at the Interior Department. Former staff members who were part of a major reorganization describe a hostile, inefficient work culture that was deliberately designed to push people out. Adam King, a former grant management specialist at the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, said his experience was meant to be punishing: “Their goal was to make my life a living hell. I left because of this administration. What they’ve done to these agencies will take talented people decades to undo,” according to reporting from Inside Climate News.
Massive Staff Departures and Morale Crisis
Burgum signed an order in April 2025 to centralize administrative personnel under the Office of the Secretary, moving nearly 5,500 employees from across Interior’s component agencies. According to Inside Climate News analysis of federal workforce data, almost 1,800 workers have left Burgum’s office since the reorganization, with the vast majority opting to retire or quit. The broader Interior Department has lost 11,000 employees—more than 17 percent of its total workforce—in the year since Trump’s second term began.
Tim Whitehouse, executive director of Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, characterized the reorganization as deliberate institutional damage. “They’re sucking the soul out of the agencies and they’re doing it on purpose,” Whitehouse said. “This is part of the effort by Secretary Burgum—the buck stops with him—to deconstruct his agency by creating trauma.” The exodus of experienced workers raises questions about the Interior Department’s capacity to manage public lands, oversee energy and mineral resources, and fulfill federal trust responsibilities with tribal nations.
Sources
- PBS News / Associated Press — Pirro’s court filing dismissing charges against David Hearn, her statement that Interior Department provided inadequate information, and Burgum’s response on social media regarding the Reflecting Pool dispute.
- The Independent — Burgum’s community-note-flagged post claiming vandalism, Trump’s criticism of Pirro, and details of the Reflecting Pool renovation and subsequent algae bloom.
- Center for Western Priorities — Former staff accounts of hostile workplace culture, the April 2025 reorganization moving 5,500 employees, nearly 1,800 departures from Burgum’s office, and Interior Department’s total workforce loss of 11,000 employees (17 percent) since the start of Trump’s second term.
