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Posted on 02/17/2017 3:44:48 PM PST by jazusamo
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Scott Pruitt was sworn into office late Friday as the 14th administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito administered the oath of office to Pruitt, the former attorney general of Oklahoma, in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building adjacent to the White House. President Trump and Vice President Pence, who have sworn in most of the previous Cabinet officials, are both out of town.
The swearing-in ceremony came hours after the Senate voted 52-46 , mostly along party lines, to confirm Pruitt, capping off a frequently contentious nomination process.
Pruitt now leads the agency that he sued more than a dozen times, often in concert with industry, during former President Barack Obama 's tenure. Pruitt had pushed to stop regulations that the former Oklahoma attorney general and his allies saw as overreach by the federal government.
The agency has 15,000 employees around the country and is responsible for enforcing laws on air, water and ground pollution, as well as numerous others.
To Republicans, Pruitt represented in a nominee exactly what the EPA needs: A leader who will roll back Obama’s aggressive environmental agenda and give states more power to enforce environmental laws.
Democrats said that Pruitt’s litigious history with the EPA shows that he does not support its mission. They also pushed to delay his vote pending the release of emails between he and his staff at the attorney general’s office and industry.
In the Senate, Pruitt garnered the support of nearly all of the Republican senators who voted , as well as Democratic Sens. Joe Manchin (W.Va.) and Heidi Heitkamp (N.D.), both of whom are running for reelection next year in states carried by Trump.
Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) joined all of the other Democrats in opposing Pruitt. Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Joe Donnelly (D-Ind.) weren’t available to vote.
Sources say that Trump is planning to visit the EPA soon and sign a number of executive orders concerning regulations and other priorities he would like to get started with at the agency. Inside EPA first reported on the orders earlier this week.
Pruitt is planning to address EPA employees at the agency’s headquarters Tuesday.
Go Scott Pruit, the Dems and enviro nazis are saddened.
Good, now work really hard to make your job unnecessary.
Dump them all, clean house
Good for Scott Pruitt.
Onward and upward for Trump and his nominees.
Transfer 100% of the employees to a temporary assignment to clean up the litter from the Dakota Access Pipeline that the enviorwackers left behind. After that, transfer them all to the river disaster that the EPA caused and they will stay there until the river is clean.
That was by far the easiest step in gaining control of the EPA.
Hopefully the 14th and last....
Absolutely...We’re going to see a big change in the EPA and soon, and hopefully a huge down sizing.
We’re all gonna die!!!
ha ha ha ha ha ha ha
Still not tired of winning...
T.G., We now have a cool head leading the EPA. No tree hugger here or in Pruitt’s closet. Saner heads will now prevail.
“Democrats said that Pruitt’s litigious history with the EPA shows that he does not support its mission.”
Duuhhh... MAGA!!!
The new EPA office spaces
New EPA company cars
New EPA computers
Don’t forget all the ducts for the ventilation system.
And the new building ventilation system.
Amen...Well said!
Hopefully on day one, Pruitt will terminate the jack-booted thugs, and put on public auction their arms and ammunition. These agencies should have never been allowed to have their own armies.
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