Press Releases

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 requested unprecedented security before taking office, then exaggerated threats against him to justify the expense afterwards. Pruitt tried to downplay his travel costs, justified them through false comparisons to his predecessors, and hid the extent to which these trips were orchestrated by lobbyists and industry. When aides objected or came forward, he had them sidelined or punished. Pruitt seems pathologically incapable of honesty or ethical behavior, and there is no reason for President Trump to delay firing him.”

Scott Pruitt has previously attempted to justify excessive spending on luxurious travel and personal security through comparisons to his predecessors, and by citing “unprecedented” threats against his life. Both of these claims have been repeatedly debunked.

Pruitt’s wasteful spending is the subject of several of the many federal investigations into his misconduct.