Gale Norton Gets Big Oil Job

Former Colorado Attorney General and Interior Secretary Gale Norton has found a new job, and it isn’t much of a surprise. As the Rocky Mountain News reports:

Former Interior Secretary Gale Norton is joining Shell Oil Co. as a general counsel, taking on a role based primarily in Colorado.

According to company spokeswoman Destin Singleton, Norton will be general counsel for Shell Exploration and Production, Unconventional Resources. That means she will provide legal services for the division that is developing and testing proprietary technology that the company hopes can improve oil recovery from sources, such as oil shale and extra heavy oils.

Norton begins the job in mid-January, Singleton said.

Norton, a former Colorado attorney general, had a controversial tenure as a member of President Bush’s cabinet and environmentalists often accused her of favoring energy companies and other industries.