NBC Highlights Politics at its Finest, Civilian Given Power to Overrule USACE

According to an NBC report, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works Jo-Ellen Darcy ignored US Army Corps of Engineers’ recommendation to issue the final easement. According to Darcy spokesperson Moira Kelley, “Ms. Darcy had the authority to make the decision on behalf of the Department of the Army, and she did so.”

As previously reported, the Corps made it clear that their “prior reviews and actions have comported with legal requirements.” Despite this fact, political appointee Darcy saw fit to deny the easement anyway.

This is frankly politics at its finest and an insult to the men and women who worked tirelessly approving the project over the last two years. Hopefully the next administration will respect expert opinion and the rule of law.