White House scraps water expert's nomination as states hash out Colorado
River plan
[September 19, 2025]
By SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A veteran water expert from Arizona says the
Trump administration withdrew his nomination to lead the federal agency
that oversees water management in the western U.S., leaving the Bureau
of Reclamation without permanent leadership this year.
Ted Cooke told The Associated Press late Wednesday that he was preparing
for a Senate confirmation hearing early this month but his name was
removed from the agenda. He wasn't told until this week that there was
an unspecified issue with his background check. Cooke said the White
House didn’t offer any details and asked only that he withdraw himself
from consideration.
“The real story here is that I’ve been sacrificed on the altar of
political expediency because of party politics and maybe Colorado River
basin intrigues,” Cooke said, adding that he believes he was given a
fabricated excuse "to avoid having any discussion on what the real issue
is.”
Cooke said he didn't know what the issue was.
The shift comes as the bureau and seven states face a deadline to decide
how to share the Colorado River amid ongoing drought and shrinking water
supplies.
The Interior Department, which oversees the bureau, referred questions
about Cooke to the White House, which did not respond to multiple emails
seeking comment.
Trump's announcement in June that he had tapped Cooke, the former
general manager of the Central Arizona Project, drew praise from many
who said Cooke's experience delivering water to the state's most
populous communities would be a plus for the bureau.
Still, officials in other Western states had concerns that Cooke would
give deference to his home state as negotiations over the future of the
Colorado River come to a head. Water managers have been grappling with
the prospect of painful cuts in water supplies as the river dwindles.
The Colorado River is a critical lifeline to seven U.S. states, more
than 20 Native American tribes, and two Mexican states. It provides
electricity to millions of homes and businesses, irrigates vast
stretches of desert farmland and reaches faucets in cities throughout
the Southwest, including Los Angeles and Las Vegas.
In Mesa, Arizona, Mayor Mark Freeman had celebrated Cooke's nomination
back in June in a social media post. On Wednesday, the Republican told
the AP he was disappointed to learn the nomination wouldn't move
forward.
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The Colorado River cuts through Black Canyon, June 6, 2023, near
White Hills, Ariz. (AP Photo/Matt York, File)
“Mr. Cooke has dedicated his career to managing Arizona’s water
resources, and his deep knowledge of the Colorado River system would
have provided valuable insight during this critical time. Although
his nomination was not confirmed, the challenges before us remain,”
Freeman said, highlighting the need to ensure reliable water
supplies.
Anne Castle, former chair of the Upper Colorado River Commission,
said in an email that withdrawal of the nomination “looks like
backroom politics at a time when what we really need is
straightforward leadership on western water issues.”
Cooke said he heard from some people that his knack for being fair
and even-handed might have worked against him. He theorized that
some officials might have been pushing to find a “more ruthless"
nominee since Colorado River negotiations have been anything but
easy.
Sarah Porter, director of the Kyl Center for Water Policy at Arizona
State University, said that while Cooke's withdrawal is a lost
opportunity to have a highly qualified person in the job, it's not
likely to disrupt ongoing negotiations. She said the bureau's acting
leadership has been working assiduously to figure out a way forward
for river management.
She also doubted that having Cooke lead the bureau would have given
Arizona a leg up, saying "there are too many other decision-makers
and significant stakeholders involved for that to ever be a real
possibility. And they know that Ted would have tried hard to rise
above all that.”
It's unclear whether the Trump administration is considering other
candidates for the top post at the bureau.
___
Associated Press writers Felicia Fonseca in New York City, Matthew
Daly in Washington, D.C., and Dorany Pineda in Los Angeles
contributed to this report.
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