Tuesday, January 07, 2025, 12:18AM |  26°
MENU
SECTIONS
OTHER
CLASSIFIEDS
CONTACT US / FAQ
Advertisement
New EPA chief Scott Pruitt.
1
MORE

Senate confirms Scott Pruitt, an opponent of the EPA, as environmental chief

Associated Press

Senate confirms Scott Pruitt, an opponent of the EPA, as environmental chief

WASHINGTON — Over the strong objections of environmental groups, the Senate confirmed Scott Pruitt to lead the Environmental Protection Agency on Friday, giving President Donald Trump an eager partner to fulfill his campaign pledge to increase the use of fossil fuels.

Mr. Pruitt was sworn in later Friday by Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito.

In six years as Oklahoma’s attorney general, Mr. Pruitt filed 14 lawsuits challenging EPA regulations that included limits on carbon emissions from coal-fired power plants. He also sued over the EPA’s recent expansion of water bodies regulated under the Clean Water Act, a federal measure opposed by industries that would be forced to clean up polluted wastewater.

Advertisement

Mr. Pruitt submitted his resignation as attorney general to Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin on Friday.

Mr. Pruitt’s supporters cheered his confirmation, hailing the 48-year-old Republican lawyer as the ideal pick to roll back environmental regulations they say are a drag on the nation’s economy.

“EPA has made life hard for families all across America,” said Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. “The agency has issued punishing regulations that caused many hardworking Americans to lose their jobs. Mr. Pruitt will bring much needed change.”

The vote was 52-46 as Republican leaders used their party’s narrow Senate majority to push Mr. Pruitt’s confirmation despite calls from top Democrats to delay the vote until requested emails are released next week.

Advertisement

Sen. Susan Collins of Maine was the lone Republican vote against Mr. Pruitt. Two Democrats from states with economies heavily dependent on fossil fuels crossed party lines to support Mr. Trump’s pick, Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota.

During his Senate confirmation hearing last month, Mr. Pruitt said he disagreed with Mr. Trump’s past statements that global warming is a hoax. However, Mr. Pruitt has previously expressed doubt about scientific evidence showing that the planet is heating up and that humans are to blame.

Mr. Pruitt’s nomination was vigorously opposed by environmental groups and hundreds of current and former EPA employees, who fear he will preside over massive budget and staff cuts.

“The biologists, scientists, lab technicians, engineers and other civil servants who work at the EPA must be able to do their jobs without political interference or fear of retribution,” said J. David Cox Sr., president of the American Federation of Government Employees, a labor union representing more than 9,000 EPA employees.

Democrats boycotted a committee vote on Mr. Pruitt’s nomination last month, citing his refusal to hand over thousands of emails that he exchanged with oil and gas executives. As part of a public records lawsuit, a state judge in Oklahoma on Thursday concluded there was no legal justification for Mr. Pruitt’s withholding his correspondence for the past two years. She ordered him to release most of the emails by next week.

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer called for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., to delay the confirmation vote for 10 days. Mr. Schumer, of New York, tried to draw a direct line between Mr. Pruitt’s withheld emails and last year’s demands from Republicans during the presidential campaign.

“Emails! Remember emails?” Mr. Schumer asked on the Senate floor. “‘We should get them out!‘ they said about Hillary Clinton. ... If they weren’t worried about them, then why rush?”

To dramatize their cause, Democrats kept the Senate in session Thursday night into Friday morning with speeches opposing Mr. Pruitt’s confirmation. Democrats were still marching to the floor at daybreak.

In the end, Mr. McConnell had the votes. So far, the Senate has confirmed 14 out of 22 Trump Cabinet or Cabinet-level picks requiring confirmation.

Another nominee, billionaire businessman Wilbur Ross, cleared a Senate hurdle on Friday and is on track to win approval to serve as commerce secretary.

First Published: February 17, 2017, 6:24 p.m.
Updated: February 18, 2017, 5:24 a.m.

RELATED
Comments Disabled For This Story
Partners
Advertisement
Lamar Jackson #8 of the Baltimore Ravens looks to pass while pressured bt T.J. Watt #90 of the Pittsburgh Steelers during the second quarter at M&T Bank Stadium on December 21, 2024 in Baltimore, Maryland.
1
sports
Paul Zeise: There is no logical reason to think the Steelers can win in Baltimore, but ...
The Allegheny County Jail, Tuesday, March 17, 2020, in Pittsburgh.
2
news
Former deputy secretary of state corrections is Innamorato's nominee for jail warden
Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin before an NFL football game against the Cincinnati Bengals in Pittsburgh, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025.
3
sports
'Many of these guys involved do not tote those bags': Mike Tomlin says Steelers' playoff drought is his burden to carry
Customers form a line on Sunday morning at Better-Maid Donuts on Steuben Street on Dec. 22, 2024.
4
business
Inside the small Elliott business making 'the best doughnuts in Pittsburgh' for over 50 years
Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson (3) runs the ball for a first down against the Cincinnati Bengals at Acrisure Stadium on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025, in the North Shore. The Cincinnati Bengals won 19-17.
5
sports
Jason Mackey: Steelers have much to fix this offseason, but will they make the necessary moves?
New EPA chief Scott Pruitt.  (Associated Press)
Associated Press
Advertisement
LATEST news
Advertisement
TOP
Email a Story