Voting Station

James G. Watt

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Politician

The Resume

    (January 31, 1938-May 27, 2023)
    Born in Lusk, Wyoming
    US Secretary of the Interior (1981-83)

Why he might be annoying:

    He banned the Beach Boys from playing a Fourth of July concert on the National Mall, claiming they would draw an 'undesirable element.'
    Standard Oil of California Chairman George Keller, noting his knack for galvanizing environmentalists into action, declared, 'Jim Watt has done more to harm our industry than any other government official in history.'
    He resigned after describing his staff with the comment, 'We have every mixture you can have. I have a black, a woman, two Jews and a cripple.'
    He was sentenced to five years probation and fined $5,000 after pleading guilty to withholding documents from a grand jury investigating influence peddling at HUD (1996).
    His Mountain State Legal Foundation provided training for fellow anti-environmentalist Interior Secretary Gale Norton.
    At a Green River Cattleman's Association dinner he said, 'If the troubles from environmentalists cannot be solved in the jury box or at the ballot box, perhaps the cartridge box should be used' (1991).

Why he might not be annoying:

    He has been married to Leilani Bomgardner for over 50 years.
    National Wildlife Federation executive Lynn Greenwalt noted, 'He knew how to make a big, sprawling agency do what he wanted.'
    Bill Moyers falsely quoted him as saying, 'After the last tree is felled, Christ will come back.'
    He responded, 'I never said it. Never believed it. Never even thought it. I know no Christian who believes or preaches such error. The Bible commands conservation—that we as Christians be careful stewards of the land and resources entrusted to us by the Creator.'

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 3 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 6 Votes: 83.33% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 10 Votes: 90.0% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 5 Votes: 80.0% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 4 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 3 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 6 Votes: 83.33% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 13 Votes: 53.85% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 24 Votes: 54.17% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 13 Votes: 61.54% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 22 Votes: 72.73% Annoying
    In 2011, Out of 11 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2010, Out of 42 Votes: 71.43% Annoying
    In 2009, Out of 67 Votes: 74.63% Annoying