Oversight

Rep. Don Beyer, a vocal critic of the EPA during President Trump’s tenure, today got his first chance to question an EPA Administrator in the Trump era. He drew direct connections Administrator Wheeler’s leadership at the EPA and the list of requests which coal baron Robert Murray presented to Trump Administration officials shortly after Trump took office. Beyer framed the overview as a… Read more »

Democrats propose bill to revoke Trump endangered species rollback BY REBECCA BEITSCH - 09/17/2019 Democrats are fighting back against a Trump administration rule that scraps numerous protections for endangered species. Legislation filed in the House on Tuesday would rescind a rule announced by the Department of the Interior in August that rolls back the Endangered Species… Read more »

Natural Resources Chair Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and Sen. Tom Udall (D-N.M.), lead Democrat on the Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment and Related Agencies, introduced legislation today to repeal all three Trump administration final rule changes to the Endangered Species Act, which taken together will fundamentally change the way we protect threatened and… Read more »

Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA) released the following statement today after the Environmental Protection Agency finalized its repeal of the Waters of the United States rule: “All Americans and virtually all industries rely on clean water. But the Trump administration has again chosen to dish out another favor to corporate polluters at great expense to the American people. The Waters of the United… Read more »

Wilbur Ross At The Center Of Another Political Storm, This Time About The Weather BY SCOTT HORSLEY - 09/10/2019 Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross is under the microscope again, amid fresh allegations of meddling with a government scientific agency. The latest storm to engulf the secretary began Sept. 1, when weather forecasters in Birmingham, Ala., issued a tweet saying… Read more »

Democrats call for Ross to resign for reportedly threatening to fire officials BY MIRANDA GREEN AND JUSTINE COLEMAN - 09/10/2019 Two Democratic lawmakers are calling for Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross's resignation following a report that he threatened top officials for contradicting President Trump's claims Hurricane Dorian might hit… Read more »

Wilbur Ross 'Needs To Resign Now' If He Threatened To Fire Top NOAA Officials For Tweet Contradicting Trump On Hurricane Dorian, Democrat Says BY SHANE CROUCHER - 09/10/2019 Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross is facing calls to resign over a report alleging that he threatened to fire top officials at NOAA for a tweet disputing President Donald Trump's claim that Hurricane Dorian would… Read more »

Wilbur Ross and the Trump War on Truth BY THE EDITORIAL BOARD - 09/10/2019 After a quiet couple of months, Wilbur Ross, the secretary of commerce, appears set on distinguishing himself again as the most compromised member of an administration that at times seems defined by ethical and moral flexibility. On Monday, The Times reported that Mr. Ross… Read more »

Proposed ban on Pentagon spending at Trump properties gets new push BY CONNOR O'BRIEN - 09/09/2019 Democrats in the House are doubling down on proposed legislation to block military funds from being spent at properties owned by President Donald Trump, following reports that Air Force personnel stayed at the president's Turnberry resort in Scotland. The House voted in July to bar… Read more »

Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA) issued the following statement after the New York Times reported Monday that Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross threatened to fire NOAA officials in retaliation for weather reports which corrected false tweets sent by the President: “Wilbur Ross must resign. “His direct attacks on the scientists and federal employees, whom he threatened to fire for doing… Read more »