Chaffetz letter: Tweet from Bryce Canyon shows 'coordination' with White House

SALT LAKE CITY — Utah Rep. Jason Chaffetz has been chasing down the information behind what led to a recent Bryce Canyon National Park tweet.

The Twitter account for Bryce Canyon National Park showed excitement for Bears Ears in late December after it was designated as a national monument by former President Barack Obama.

"Welcome to the family Bears Ears (& Gold Butte) NM! A hopeful slot in our front desk maps has long been held for you," the Dec. 29 tweet reads, accompanied by a picture of brochure slots with an empty space for Bears Ears.

On Jan. 19, the day before Trump was inaugurated, Chaffetz sent a letter to Bryce Canyon Interim Superintendent Susan Fritzke, requesting more information about the tweet.

"This message created the appearance that officials at Bryce Canyon coordinated with the White House prior to this most recent designation," the letter states. "If it is true that you or your staff knew in advance about the Bears Ears National Monument designation, it calls into question the White House's claim to Utah Governor Gary Herbert that no decision had been made about Bears Ears as of December 15, 2016."

The letter requested that Fritzke fully explain if any Bryce Canyon employees knew about the Bears Ears monument before Obama announced it, when the brochure slot was made and who authorized it.

Fritzke sent Chaffetz a letter back, telling him the mail slot was created in the summer by a park volunteer who had seen a news report about a possible Bears Ears monument. A supervisor approved the brochure slot "knowing that if the Bears Ears National Monument was not created, the slot could be used by another regional recreation area."

Fritzke told KSL the intern was simply “thinking ahead” and creating the slot was the logical thing to do. She described the map rack as being behind the information desk and only accessible to park rangers.

She also noted that "no employees of Bryce Canyon National Park were consulted with, or coordinated with, any entities regarding the designation of Bears Ears National Monument."

Peter Corroon, chairman of the Utah Democratic Party, said he thinks Chaffetz is wasting his time.

”I think Congressman Chaffetz, frankly, is fishing in the wrong stream; he should be looking at bigger things," Corroon said. "He should be looking at Donald Trump and what’s going on in his background. He should be looking at Russia."

”What ties there are between the Trump administration and Russia? There’s a whole lot of things more important than a tweet from somebody in the National Park Service.”

Matthew Burbank, a University of Utah political science professor, said Tuesday the letter from Chaffetz appears to be an attempt to send a warning to federal employees that they should be cautious.

"It's a way of saying, 'Don't do things that get out ahead of what the political position is,'" Burbank said, especially at a time when some National Park Service and other government employees have "rogue" Twitter accounts critical of the administration.

Chaffetz's press secretary M.J. Henshaw told KSL Chaffetz had no comment "beyond what’s written in the letter."

Chaffetz told the editorial boards of KSL and the Deseret News on Tuesday that President Donald Trump "absolutely" wants to take action to either rescind or modify the recently created Bears Ears National Monument.

"I had an opportunity to sit with the president," he said. "It was the first thing I brought up. He was well-versed in it."

"There's not a single elected official at any level of government who represents that area who supported Bears Ears. Not one. Not one. So that's pretty compelling."

While legal experts explore the options, Chaffetz expressed confidence that the president will take action.

"(Trump) was very supportive," he said. "Very sympathetic, very supportive."

Contributing: Lisa Riley Roche

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