Embattled EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt tells Congress he has 'nothing to hide' as he defends his conduct
WASHINGTON — Embatted EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt defiantly told lawmakers he has “nothing to hide” amid a flurry of probes into ethical and mismanagement allegations.
“I have nothing to hide as it relates to how I’ve run the agency the past 16 months,” Pruitt told a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee at a packed hearing Thursday. Those attacking him, he said “want to derail (deregulatory agenda) … I’m simply not going to let that happen.”
As the Democratic drumbeat intensifies for his ouster, Pruitt headed to Capitol Hill for two separate House committee hearings Thursday where he’s facing scrutiny for a litany of ethical and spending missteps of which he’s been accused.
Both hearings — in the morning before an Energy and Commerce subcommittee and in the afternoon before an Appropriations subcommittee — have been convened to discuss the agency’s 2019 budget request. But they’re expected to feature a number of tough questions regarding Pruitt’s management of the agency and his own personal conduct.
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The EPA administrator has been slammed for allegedly giving aides raises after the White House told him not to, for renting a bedroom in a Capitol Hill apartment owned by the wife of a top energy lobbyist, and for spending more than $100,000 on luxury air travel.
Two weeks ago, Pruitt’s former deputy chief of staff came forward with allegations that his ex-boss overspent his office allowance, demanded security measures that weren’t warranted, and insisted on exorbitant travel arrangements — including the rental of a $100,000-per-month private jet.
Last week, the Government Accountability Office — Congress’ watchdog agency — concluded the EPA broke the spending laws when it failed to tell lawmakers that it was allocating more than $43,000 to install a soundproof phone booth in Pruitt’s office last year.
“You have failed as a steward of taxpayer dollars and of America’s environment,” Rep. Paul Tonko, D-N.Y., who chairs the Environment Subcommittee where Pruitt testified Thursday morning, told the administrator. “You were never fit for this job.â€
Pruitt has kept his job in the face of withering criticism from most Democrats and a small but growing number of Republicans because President Trump continues to have confidence in him and his attempts to aggressively dismantle Obama-era environmental rules that industry leaders say hamper economic growth.
Pruitt and his aides have refuted some of the allegations and downplayed others, often saying previous administrations spent similar amounts especially when it came to travel. The high costs of protecting Pruitt were due mainly to the unprecedented level and volume of threats against him, they said.Â
But White House officials indicated the volume of alleged missteps is trying their patience.
“We’re evaluating these concerns, and we expect the EPA Administrator to answer for them,” White House Spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said during a briefing Wednesday when asked about Pruitt.
Environmentalists from the start have been against Pruitt, the former Oklahoma Attorney General who sued the EPA 14 times to undo a myriad of regulations.
His efforts to roll back rules limiting carbon emissions, regulating bodies of water, and auto emissions have earned him the enmity of environmental groups and public health advocates.
On Tuesday, Pruitt announced a proposed rule that would limit the scope of scientific studies the agency uses as the foundation underpinning many of its regulations, a move that could fundamentally reshape the way science supports environmental protections.
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