April 17, 2018

Duckworth: Scott Pruitt Must Resign Immediately or Be Fired

 

[WASHINGTON, DC] — Following a series of reports exposing EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt’s wasteful and exorbitant spending of taxpayer dollars, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) called on Pruitt to resign immediately or be fired:

“It is abundantly clear that Scott Pruitt has abused the public trust by using his government position to finance his lavish lifestyle. Pruitt has wasted millions of taxpayer dollars on first-class plane tickets, private planes, luxury hotels, office furniture, and a large 24/7 personal security detail despite his own agency being unable to justify it. He’s the subject of no less than five independent investigations, he has retaliated against EPA staff who have questioned his spending habits, and he likely violated ethics rules by renting an apartment from an industry lobbyist. His behavior is absolutely unacceptable. Scott Pruitt must resign or be fired immediately.”

Duckworth voted against Pruitt’s nomination to be EPA Administrator in 2017, citing his history of denying the science of climate change, past opposition to the Renewable Fuel Standard, refusal to acknowledge the dangers of lead poisoning, and the many lawsuits he filed as Oklahoma Attorney General that attempted to undermine the EPA’s ability to carry out its mission.

Earlier this week, Duckworth asked a non-partisan government watchdog to investigate whether Pruitt’s EPA broke multiple federal laws by giving two top Pruitt aides significant salary increases without the appropriate authorization. Duckworth also recently introduced legislation that would require the Trump Administration – and any future administration – to publicly disclose how much they spend on travel in response to revelations that multiple Trump Cabinet Secretaries, including Pruitt, wasted millions of taxpayer dollars chartering private and military planes and purchasing first-class tickets. Duckworth’s bill would protect taxpayers by shining a light on the travel practices of Trump Cabinet officials, discouraging them from spending wasteful amounts of taxpayer dollars on needless luxury travel.

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