This week we saw another example of the power of seniority in the U.S. Senate.

Sen. Conrad Burns, R-Mont, was in a position to flatly assert that a controversial — and we believe unwise — proposal by the Bush administration to sell federal land is “dead in the water.”

Burns could talk that way because his seniority has installed him as chairman of the Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee. Any land-sale bill is likely to have to get through that committee, and Burns said he wasn’t going to let that happen.

A spokesman for Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., another opponent of the plan and a seniority-heavy member on the Democratic side the aisle, warned that Bush isn’t likely to back down and the fight against the federal land sales will be ongoing. Be that as it may, the fact remains that Burns’ stance against the proposal as a member of the ruling party counts a lot more than that of anybody in the minority.

Under the administration’s plan, proceeds of the sale of “isolated” public lands would go to fund the Secure Rural Schools Act, which helps counties fund schools and roads in areas with large amounts of federal land. We’ve argued that it is poor public policy to finance ongoing budget needs with one-time proceeds obtained by selling off assets.

Burns, himself a former county commissioner, came down against the idea after talking with representatives of county governments and conservation groups. He made a good call.