Montana BLM candidate responds to tree planting and personal loan allegations

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HELENA Republicans on a U.S. Senate committee have asked the White House to withdraw Montanan’s nomination Tracy Stone-Manning to head the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, claiming she made false and misleading statements about his involvement in a tree planting incident in 1989.

Republicans also released a letter on Wednesday from a former US Forest Service investigator who said Stone-Manning helped plan the doping and knew who carried out the crime, but did not cooperate or come forward before. 1993, when she faced possible lawsuits and entered into an immunity deal in exchange for her testimony.

Ms Stone-Manning was not an innocent bystander, nor a victim in this case, wrote Michael Merkley. And, she was definitely not a hero.

Yet Stone-Manning, in written responses to questions from members of the US Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, said she had no implication other than sending a letter in 1989 to officials of the forest service informing them of tree planting.

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In a trial in federal court in 1993, she also testified against those involved in waxing trees. Two of them were convicted.

Stone-Manning did not respond directly to Merkley’s allegations, but presidential candidates for federal office generally do not speak publicly during the nomination process unless approved by the White House.

The Biden administration said Thursday it was sticking to Tracys’ statements and written submissions.

The White House has also said it stands by her appointment, calling her a dedicated public servant who is uniquely qualified to be the next director of the Bureau of Land Management.

It is not known when the Senate committee will vote on the confirmation of Stone-Mannings. Sources told MTN News earlier this week that a vote could take place as early as next week.

US Senator Steve Daines, R-Mont., Is a member of the committee and has spoken out against the confirmation of Stone-Mannings.

Stone-Manning, of Missoula, is a former director of state for U.S. Senator Jon Tester, D-Mont., And former director of the State Department of Environmental Quality under Democratic Governor Steve Bullock.

She has also worked for the National Wildlife Federation and the Clark Fork Coalition, a conservation group based in Missoula.

Biden appointed her in May as head of the BLM, which manages 245 million acres of federal land and has 9,000 employees.

Republicans on the Senate committee asked Stone-Manning several questions about the tree-planting incident in 1989, his personal loan from a wealthy Democratic donor in Missoula, and his attitude to mining, energy and other development on federal lands under the control of the BLM. .

These questions and Stone-Mannings’ answers are detailed in a 57-page document released Wednesday evening.

Stone-Manning said the letter informing the Forest Service of the addition of trees in 1989 during a timber sale in an Idaho national forest was composed by John Blount, and that he had it for him. shown outside Rankin Hall on the University of Montana campus in Missoula. , where she was a student.

Tree pricking involves driving metal or ceramic spikes into trees to prevent them from being cut. Spikes can injure loggers who use chainsaws or other power saws to cut trees.

Stone-Manning testified against Blount and others involved in tree planting, after being granted immunity from prosecution.

She said she sent the letter to the US Forest Service because she wanted to let them know and was worried Blount wouldn’t.

I was worried that if I didn’t send the letter, he wouldn’t, and I wanted to make sure someone knew about it so that no one was hurt, she said in her response to the committee. I remember being bothered by the whole situation and scared of (Blount); I didn’t want anything to do with it and I didn’t want anyone to be hurt.

Merkley also said in his letter that Stone-Manning was the meanest of suspects when he first investigated the incident in 1989, that it was extremely difficult to work with and that he would not provide guidance. hair, examples of handwriting or fingerprints until told that the shed needs to be shut down. if she didn’t.

He said other witnesses identified Stone-Manning as an active member of the group that planned the tree planting.

GOP senators also asked Stone-Manning many questions about a $ 100,000 personal loan she received in 2008 from Stuart Goldberg, a wealthy Missoula developer and frequent contributor to Democratic candidates.

They also suggested that Stone-Manning may have broken the ethics rules of the United States Senate because she worked for Sen. Testing at the time and had not reported the loan as a gift. The loan was at 6%, well below the market rate for such a loan, they said.

Stone-Manning said Goldberg has been a known personal friend for some time and that she and her husband have celebrated their wedding. She said she did not view the loan as a gift.

Stone-Manning said a stereo and home theater store run by her husband, Dick Manning, was bankrupt during the 2008-09 recession, and they used the money to pay off a business loan after the store closes.

They repaid $ 40,000 to Goldberg in 2009 after selling their house and downsizing, then paid only the interest on the loan, at 6%, until they paid off the remaining $ 60,000 in principal. in 2020, she said.

I believe the loan deal with Mr. Goldberg was a fair deal among friends, where Mr. Goldberg received a fair return on his loan, Stone-Manning said.

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