The leaders of seven states announced Friday, one day before a Trump administration deadline, that there is still no deal to share the diminishing waters of the Colorado River. That leaves the Southwest in a quagmire with uncertain repercussions while the river’s depleted reservoirs continue to decline. Babbitt, who was Interior secretary under President Bill Clinton from 1993 to 2001, said he thinks the Trump administration’s options are too narrow and inadequate. They would place the burden of water cuts on Arizona, California and Nevada while not requiring any for the four other upriver states — Colorado, Utah, Wyoming and New Mexico. In a written statement, they stressed they are already dealing with substantial water cuts, and said their downstream neighbors are trying to secure water “that simply does not exist.”___©2026 Los Angeles Times.

Source: Los Angeles Times February 14, 2026 14:55 UTC