A group of Trump administration officials dubbed “the God Squad” has voted to waive restrictions on oil and gas drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, putting protected endangered species, including whales and sea turtles, at risk.
The Endangered Species Committee, which earned the “God Squad” nickname because it can make decisions that impact the survival of imperiled species, unanimously voted Tuesday to approve the Endangered Species Act exemption during a meeting at the Interior Department in Washington, D.C.
Furious demonstrators gathered outside the building to protest the decision, which is the latest in a long line of environmental rollbacks seen under the Trump administration.
Defenders of Wildlife, an environmental advocacy non-profit, said the move could harm “dozens of imperiled species,” including the critically endangered Rice’s whale. There are only about 50 Rice’s whales remaining in the Gulf of Mexico, according to the most recent data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Kemp’s ridley sea turtle, the world’s smallest and most endangered species of turtle, is also found in the Gulf.
The Independent has contacted the Interior Department for comment.
Several high-ranking administration officials attended the meeting, including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin.
Hegseth said the exemption is “a critical matter of national security” and that the U.S. “must ensure that our energy supply remains reliable and secure always.” He added that the decision is “not just about gas prices, it’s about our ability to power our military and protect our nation.”
“The Strait of Hormuz is the world's busiest oil route, and recent hostile action by the Iranian terror regime highlights yet again why robust domestic oil production is a national security imperative,” he told the committee.
Andrew Bowman, president and CEO of Defenders of Wildlife, called the committee’s decision “unprecedented and unlawful.”
“Invoking national security cannot justify potentially pushing the Rice’s whale — or any of our nation’s irreplaceable wildlife species — into the abyss of extinction,” he said in a statement.
“If this administration were truly concerned about national security, it would focus on what will protect our quality of life and a secure future for all Americans,” he continued. “That includes healthy lands and waters that support people and the wildlife that we love and rely upon.”
Andrea Woods, a spokesperson for the American Petroleum Institute, said the industry has a “long track record of protecting wildlife while developing offshore energy responsibly,” according to The Washington Post.
“Over the long term, American energy leadership depends on getting that balance right through reasonable, science-based protections while meeting growing energy demand,” Woods added.
The “God Squad” has only met three other times, and last convened in 1992 to discuss a potential exemption for logging, according to The New York Times.
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