Climate Change and the Environment

Washington Post Six House Democrats on Friday sought a criminal investigation into Environmental Protection Agency chief Scott Pruitt for reportedly using his office in a bid to secure work for his wife. Writing to FBI Director Christopher A. Wray and acting assistant attorney general John Cronan, the lawmakers said Pruitt had used his office for “the personal gain of himself and his… Read more »

Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA) today led more than 30 Democrats in a letter to Energy Secretary Rick Perry opposing the Administration’s baseless plan to use emergency authorities to intervene in planned power plant retirements. The lawmakers urged the Trump administration and Secretary Perry to stop using the false narrative that emergency authorities must be used to prop up coal plants for grid… Read more »

Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA) today had an exchange with an Energy Department official which revealed the Trump Administration is flying blind on both the costs of its proposed bailout for US energy companies, and on the effects that the bailout would have on American businesses, including the manufacturing sector. The exchange between Beyer and Bruce Walker, Assistant Secretary in the Office of… Read more »

While attending the White House’s “Media Row” event today to promote President Trump’s first 500 days in office, EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt was asked by Nexstar reporter Jessica Smith to explain “reports that he tried to help his wife become a Chick-fil-A franchisee,” (for which Pruitt used his position and official EPA resources, in clear violation of federal regulations). Here is… Read more »

Congressional Safe Climate Caucus Co-Chairs Alan Lowenthal (CA-47) and Don Beyer (VA-08) released the following statement on the one-year anniversary of President Donald Trump’s decision to initiate U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Climate Agreement: “It has been one year since Donald Trump announced that he would withdraw the United States from the Paris Climate Agreement, and he… Read more »

As the growing number of investigations into EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt’s misconduct makes the President’s ongoing decision not to fire him look more ridiculous by the day, Pruitt last week found new ways to disgrace his public office: AP: “Guards barred an AP reporter from passing through a security checkpoint inside the building. When the reporter asked to speak to an EPA… Read more »

Rep. Don Beyer today issued the following statement on the news that EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt’s spending on personal security and travel during his first year in office was $3.5 million, a number significantly higher than previously disclosed: “Everything Scott Pruitt said about his wasteful spending turned out to be false,” said Rep. Beyer. “Internal EPA documents show that he… Read more »

Think Progress Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt has spent $3.5 million in taxpayer dollars on personal security in just his first year in the position, CBS News revealed Friday. This is far more than his two predecessors from the Obama administration, who CBS News says spent between $1.6 to $2 million annually on security. EPA spokesman Jahan… Read more »

Rep. Don Beyer today led a group of five House Democratic leaders requesting information from EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt and the EPA’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) about Pruitt’s legal defense fund. Pruitt confirmed the existence of the fund to Senators in a hearing last week, but key details have not yet been made public or provided to Congress, which potentially raises a… Read more »

The Hill House Democrats on Thursday sent letters to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt and the agency's Office of Inspector General (OIG) requesting information on a legal defense fund set up by Pruitt to defend himself in the midst of multiple scandals. Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.), the ranking member on the House Judiciary Committee, and a… Read more »