Dirk Kempthorne, former Idaho governor and U.S. Interior secretary, dies at 74

Politics Dirk Kempthorne, former Idaho governor and U.S. Interior secretary, dies at 74 April 25, 20265:49 PM ET By The Associated Press Department of the Interior Former Secretary Dirk Kempthorne, testifies during a joint House Subcommittees' hearing of Oversight and Investigations, and of Energy and Environment, regarding the role of the Interior Department in the Deepwater Horizon disaster, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, July 20, 2010. Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP hide caption toggle caption Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP Former Idaho Gov. and U.S. Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne has died at age 74, his family said in a written statement Saturday. Kempthorne died Friday evening in Boise, the statement said. No cause was given. He had been diagnosed with colon cancer last year. "Beyond his public service, he was a devoted husband, father, and grandfather whose greatest joy came from time spent with family and the people he met along the way," his family said. "He had a rare gift for truly seeing others — remembering names, stories, and the small details that made each person feel known and valued." Sponsor Message News Idaho's Kempthorne Lands a New Federal Role Kempthorne, a Republican, was elected mayor of Boise in 1985 at age 34, and he was credited with revitalizing the downtown by securing an agreement to build a convention center. He served seven years before winning the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Sen. Steve Symms in 1992. During his time in Washington, he authored legislation — signed by Democratic President Bill Clinton — to end unfunded federal mandates on state and local governments. Rather than run for reelection in 1998, he entered an open election for governor, trouncing his Democratic opponent by garnering more than two-thirds of the vote. President George W. Bush appointed him Interior secretary in 2006, a position he held until the end of Bush's presidency — and during which he lived on a houseboat docked in the Potomac River. "Dirk was one of the finest public servants I ever knew because he was one of the finest men," former President George W. Bush said in a written statement Saturday. "He was considerate, smart, and capable. Dirk loved our lands and waters, and as Secretary of the Interior, he was an effective steward of our natural resources." Environmentalists often found Kempthorne too accommodating of the oil and gas industry and other commercial interests. But in 2008, he bucked other advisers in the White House by insisting that the polar bear should be listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act because of the loss of sea ice in the Arctic. He was prepared to resign over it when Bush decided to back him. Sponsor Message Environment The Environmental Record of Bush's Pick for Interior "As Governor, Dirk left an enduring mark on our state," Idaho Gov. Brad Little said in a written statement. With the partnership of his wife, Patricia, Kempthorne "championed children and families, strengthened public education, and led transformational investments in our transportation system that will benefit Idahoans for generations." In a 2023 question-and-answer session with the George W. Bush Presidential Center, Kempthorne recalled helping evacuate nearly 400 U.S. citizens and Afghan allies from Afghanistan two years earlier, as many were being sought by the Taliban following the U.S. military's chaotic withdrawal. Kempthorne and others worked frantically for months to raise money and garner the…

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