Press Releases

It has been two weeks since the public began to find out just how badly EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt has been behaving. What we know about Pruitt’s actions keeps getting worse, but here’s a snapshot before the next stories break:

Quid Pro Condo

It has only been two weeks since we learned that Pruitt got a sweetheart deal on a condo from an energy lobbyist. Pruitt tried to justify that secret arrangement with excuses that quickly fell apart:

• Pruitt claimed that ethics officials cleared his arrangement. The ethics official walked that back.
• Pruitt claimed he paid a fair, market rate to his lobbyist landlord. That isn’t true.
• Pruitt claimed his lobbyist landlord has no clients with business before the EPA. That isn’t true.

We still don’t have a full picture of why taxpayers were forced to cover the cost of a destroyed door at the condo, and now the acting head of the Office of Government Ethics is raising questions about Pruitt’s conduct.

What About Those Raises?

After The Atlantic reported that Pruitt used an obscure legislative loophole to give his favorite aides huge raises of tens of thousands of dollars, despite a rejection of those raises by the White House, Pruitt went on FoxNews to deny that he had any prior knowledge of the raises. But internal emails strongly suggest that he lied.

Scott Pruitt’s Chief of Staff tried to shield his boss from blame by claiming he approved the raises without Pruitt’s knowledge – which may have been illegal – but, tellingly, Pruitt has done nothing to hold him accountable. If Pruitt’s Chief of Staff overruled the White House without his boss’ knowledge to give aides tens of thousands of dollars, you’d think Pruitt would be upset enough to punish him.

Pruitt could clear up what really happened at any time by publicizing documents of internal exchanges which led to the raises. Instead, his aides are trying to conceal evidence from investigators.

Pruitt’s Paranoia Fuels Wasteful Spending

Pruitt spent TRIPLE what his predecessors spent on security, an estimated $3,000,000. He was also so concerned for his personal safety that he “diverted officers away from investigating environmental crimes in order to protect him…”

…which also includes exorbitant spending on first class travel, a secure phone booth, biometric locks, and a bug sweep of his office.

And there are strong reasons to doubt that Pruitt’s massive spending of taxpayer dollars to protect him were justified by actual threats.

How Has Pruitt Responded?

Pruitt tried to silence the people who objected to his abuses, including retaliations against whistleblowers. He has not backed up his explanations with evidence or released documents to support his claims that raises were given to his staff without his knowledge.

This Definitely Affects EPA Policy

Pruitt’s decisions at the EPA have real impacts on American lives. This scandal has offered glaring evidence that, under Scott Pruitt, EPA policy – and the public health of the people in the country – is for sale.