Tag: Scott Pruitt

Gowdy expands probe into EPA’s Pruitt

The following article by Anthony Adragna and Alex Guillén was posted on the Politico website April 13, 2018:

The development is a further sign of the deepening bipartisan scrutiny facing President Donald Trump’s environmental chief.

EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt faces allegations of excessive spending on travel, vehicles, raises and luxe security features such as a $43,000 soundproof phone booth. | Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP Photo

House Oversight Chairman Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) said Friday he’s expanding his probe into the alleged ethical and spending abuses by EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt one day after his staff met for several hours with a former EPA aide who was pushed out of the agency.

Gowdy’s latest letter is a further sign of the deepening bipartisan scrutiny facing President Donald Trump’s environmental chief, whose critics accuse him of excessive spending on travel, vehicles, staff raises and luxe security features such as a $43,000 soundproof phone booth. Continue reading “Gowdy expands probe into EPA’s Pruitt”

Senate confirms a former coal lobbyist as Scott Pruitt’s second-in-command at EPA

The following article by Steven Mufson, Brady Dennis and Dino Grandoni was posted on the Washington Post website April 12, 2018:

Andrew Wheeler appears during his confirmation hearing to be Deputy Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency before the Senate Committee on the Environment and Public Works on Nov. 8, 2017. Credit: Alex Edelman/AP

If embattled Environmental Protection Agency chief Scott Pruitt were to leave office, the reins of the agency could fall to a former Senate aide and coal mining lobbyist who was confirmed 53 to 45 Thursday afternoon to become second-in-command at the EPA.

Andrew Wheeler worked at the EPA more than two decades ago and later served as an adviser to Sen. James M. Inhofe (R-Okla.), a high-profile critic of climate science who famously brought a snowball to the Senate floor as a prop. For the past nine years, Wheeler has been a lobbyist for a variety of companies, including Appalachian coal mining firm Murray Energy.

President Trump nominated Wheeler for the deputy administrator job last fall, but only this week did his nomination finally arrive on the Senate floor for a vote.

Wheeler, who works for the lobbying firm Faegre Baker Daniels, received $370,000 in fees last year from Murray Energy. Murray has paid Wheeler’s firms $225,000 to $559,000 over the past nine years. Continue reading “Senate confirms a former coal lobbyist as Scott Pruitt’s second-in-command at EPA”

Scott Pruitt just got called out by the country’s top ethics official

The following article by Eric Boehlert was posted on the ShareBlue website April 9, 2018:

The EPA chief’s corrupt, lavish spending isn’t going unnoticed.

Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt testifies before Congress, December 2017. Credit: Getty/Pete Marovich

Trump and most Republicans won’t take action against crooked EPA chief Scott Pruitt. But the federal government’s top ethics cop just called him out and is demanding answer for why Pruitt is using tax dollars to support his extravagant lifestyle, including a family trip to Disneyland.

“The success of our government depends on maintaining the trust of the people we serve,” wrote David Apol, acting director of the Office of Government Ethics wrote in the letter sent Monday morning to the E.P.A. “The American public needs to have confidence that ethics violations, as well as the appearance of ethics violations, are investigated and appropriately addressed.” Continue reading “Scott Pruitt just got called out by the country’s top ethics official”

Collins: Pruitt is the wrong person to head the EPA on policy grounds alone

The following article by Rebecca Savransky was posted on the Hill website April 8, 2018:

Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) said Sunday that she doesn’t believe Scott Pruitt is the right person to be leading the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

“On policy grounds alone, I think Scott Pruitt is the wrong person to head the EPA,” Collins said during an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union.”

She was pressed on whether she believes Pruitt should resign or be fired. Continue reading “Collins: Pruitt is the wrong person to head the EPA on policy grounds alone”

Pruitt’s round-the-clock security has cost taxpayers nearly $3 million

The following article by Juliet Eilperin and Brady Dennis was posted on the Washington Post website April 7, 2018:

This post has been updated.

Scott Pruitt’s security detail has required far more resources than his predecessors’, costing taxpayers nearly $3 million when factoring in overtime and frequent travel for the agents who protect the Environmental Protection Agency administrator 24/7, according to an EPA official.

That figure, first reported by the Associated Press, sheds new light on the unprecedented level of security that has surrounded Pruitt since shortly after he arrived at the agency. Continue reading “Pruitt’s round-the-clock security has cost taxpayers nearly $3 million”

In His Haste to Roll Back Rules, Scott Pruitt, E.P.A. Chief, Risks His Agenda Image

The following article by Coral Davenport and Lisa Friedman was posted on the New York Times website April 7, 2018:

Employees at the Environmental Protection Agency faced career repercussions after questioning the spending of its administrator, Scott Pruitt, center. Credit: Andrew Harnik/AP

WASHINGTON — As ethical questions threaten the Environmental Protection Agency administrator, Scott Pruitt, President Trump has defended him with a persuasive conservative argument: Mr. Pruitt is doing a great job at what he was hired to do, roll back regulations.

But legal experts and White House officials say that in Mr. Pruitt’s haste to undo government rules and in his eagerness to hold high-profile political events promoting his agenda, he has often been less than rigorous in following important procedures, leading to poorly crafted legal efforts that risk being struck down in court. Continue reading “In His Haste to Roll Back Rules, Scott Pruitt, E.P.A. Chief, Risks His Agenda Image”

AP sources: EPA chief spent millions on security and travel

The following article by Michael Biesecker was posted on the Associated Press website April 7, 2018:

WASHINGTON (AP) — Environmental Protection Agency chief Scott Pruitt’s concern with his safety came at a steep cost to taxpayers as his swollen security detail blew through overtime budgets and at times diverted officers away from investigating environmental crimes.

Altogether, the agency spent millions of dollars for a 20-member full-time detail that is more than three times the size of his predecessor’s part-time security contingent. Continue reading “AP sources: EPA chief spent millions on security and travel”

Lobbyist couple had to change the locks on Pruitt

The following article by Eliana Johnson was posted on the Politico website April 6, 2018:

People familiar with the EPA administrator’s condo rental say the arrangement, which has drawn intense scrutiny, was supposed to be a temporary fix, but he overstayed his welcome.

Scott Pruitt was only supposed to be living in the Capitol Hill condominium that has become a focal point of his latest ethics controversy for six weeks last year while he got settled in Washington – but the new Environmental Protection Agency administrator didn’t leave when his lease ended.

Instead, he asked the lobbyist couple who became his disgruntled landlords to revise his lease several times, according to two people with knowledge of the situation. Continue reading “Lobbyist couple had to change the locks on Pruitt”

White House has some serious legal questions to answer about Pruitt’s scandals

The following article by Natasha Geiling was posted on the ThinkProgress website April 6, 2018:

What did the White House know? How involved was energy lobbyist Steven Hart? And did Pruitt break the law at any point?

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt is facing a mounting ethics crisis, from revelations that he rented a luxury Capitol Hill condofrom a lobbyist couple for $50 a night to allegations that he reassigned senior staffwho questioned his spending habits at the agency.

This week, as a fuller picture of the lobbyist-linked condo deal has emerged, both Democrat and Republican politicians have called for Pruitt to resign as administrator. But even as new details continue to emerge about Pruitt’s conduct, several key questions remain unanswered. Continue reading “White House has some serious legal questions to answer about Pruitt’s scandals”

All of the reasons EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt is under fire (as of now)

The following article by Philip Bump was posted on the Washington Post website April 5, 2018:

On April 4, Fox News host Ed Henry pressed EPA administrator Scott Pruitt on the many recent controversies swirling around him. (Allie Caren/The Washington Post)

An emerging problem with the Trump administration is that allegations of impropriety against members of President Trump’s Cabinet can blend together. In part, that’s a function of the sheer volume of such incidents. In part, it’s a function of overlap — multiple allegations of expensive flights or expensive furniture against different people.

No one, though, has accumulated a list quite as extensive as Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt. In the past week, allegations have mounted at Pruitt’s feet faster than precipitation in a climate-change-fueled extreme weather event. And while this last week has been rough, the new stories have been tacked onto an existing list of concerns about Pruitt’s behavior in office. Continue reading “All of the reasons EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt is under fire (as of now)”