April 30, 2018
By USA Today Editorial Board –
Scott Pruitt seems to have wriggled through last week’s high-profile testimony on Capitol Hill, but that doesn’t mean he should keep his job atop the Environmental Protection Agency.
Even in the scandal-plagued Trump administration, Pruitt stands out as an ethical train wreck who has displayed a jaw-dropping sense of entitlement. His relatively brief tenure as EPA administrator has already spawned no fewer than 11 federal inquiries.
For those keeping score at home, there’s his sweetheart, $50-a-night rental agreement with an energy lobbyist’s wife. That’s on top of his lavish spending of taxpayer money on security, first-class flight tickets and an infamous $43,000 secure phone booth that evokes mirthful comparison with the “cone of silence” in the old Get Smart television series.
The mission of the Environmental Protection Agency is “to protect human health and the environment.” Disgraced EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt tried his best to undermine this vital mission by choosing to slash critical health protections and let corporate polluters off the hook. Now that Pruitt’s been booted, we need an EPA administrator dedicated to undoing his toxic agenda and restoring the agency to its core mission. Progress is possible and necessary – but another corporate crony or climate skeptic will not get us there.
Scott Pruitt is gone, but the fight is just beginning. We need an EPA administrator who puts our health and environment first, period. Any alternative is unacceptable.
