Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) appointment

The New York Times/Politics/Coral Davenport, 2/17/17. "Senate confirms Scott Pruitt as E.P.A. head."

"Its just weather" (Trump)

Scott Pruitt is extremely qualified
to ruin clean air, clean water.

"WASHINGTON — The Senate confirmed Scott Pruitt on Friday to run the Environmental Protection Agency, putting a seasoned legal opponent of the agency at the helm of President Trump’s efforts to dismantle major regulations on climate change and clean water — and to cut the size and authority of the government’s environmental enforcer.

Senators voted 52 to 46 to confirm Mr. Pruitt, the Oklahoma attorney general who has built a career out of suing to block the E.P.A.’s major environmental rules and has called for the dissolution of much of the agency’s authority. One Republican, Susan Collins of Maine, crossed party lines to vote against Mr. Pruitt, while two Democrats, Joe Manchin III of West Virginia and Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota, both from coal-rich states where voters generally oppose environmental rules, voted for him. Democrats railed all night on the Senate floor against Mr. Pruitt and urged Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the majority leader, to delay the confirmation vote until after next Tuesday (2/21/17), when the Oklahoma attorney general’s office is under order to release about 3,000 of Mr. Pruitt’s emails related to his communications with the fossil fuel industry."  Read article.

Air quality.  Nope.

Reference, Scott Pruitt's view and action track record against the E.P.A. Fact Check. a project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center/Vanessa Schipani, 12/15/16. "Scott Pruitt, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to head the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, has made some questionable claims related to global warming, fracking and the Clean Power Plan. A self-described “leading advocate against the EPA’s activist agenda,” Pruitt, Oklahoma’s attorney general since 2011, has repeatedly sued the agency and other government entities over environmental rules and regulations, at times in direct cooperation with fossil fuel companies." 

Related articles.  BBC News US and Canada/Reuters, 2/18/17, "Scott Pruitt: Controversial Trump environment nominee sworn in." ....  "Mr Pruitt, 48, had refused to hand over the emails, at the request of a liberal watchdog, for more than two years. .... Hundreds of former EPA staff members wrote an open letter against his appointment, some calling him an "unqualified extremist"..... With Mr Pruitt in place, it's likely that President Trump will rapidly push ahead with orders to overturn Obama's Clean Power Plan and his "Waters of the US" rule, something conservatives also see as an over-extension of federal power."  CNN/Ted Barrett, 2/17/17, "Scott Pruitt confirmed to EPA."

'He's exceptionally qualified,' said Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. 'He's dedicated to environmental protection. And, as someone with state government experience, he understands the real-world consequences of EPA actions and knows that balance is the key to making policies that are sustainable over the long-term." .... 'Mr. Pruitt has extreme environmental policy views. And he has zero experience running an environmental protection agency. In fact, he does not believe in the fundamental mission of EPA," said Sen. Tom Udall, D-New Mexico. 'Attorney General Pruitt made his name opposing EPA rules that protect human health and the environment, fighting against clean air and clean water, disregarding the science behind the EPA's protections for human health and the environment, on behalf of for-profit special interests, not the public interest.'.... At a press conference Friday, Merkley said the first batch of emails will be released on Tuesday (2/21/17), with a second batch released on February 26. They scanned documents will be transferred to the Center for Media and Democracy, then the Senate will get copies. So Democrats originally requesting the vote be postponed until March 3, but that request was denied.Democrats also lost a motion to extend debate until February 27, in a mostly party-line vote." 

Note photographs.

 Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt by Jim Beckel from The Oklahoman/brianna Bailey, 5/13/13,"Oklahoma legal groups use settlement money to assist, investigate."

Noah boat from Nevada County Scooper/James Schlarmann,"Trump's EPA Head Figures The Earth Has 'Had A Good 6,000-Year Run'." Industrial smoke by James Woodcock/AP from Seattle PI/Joel Connelly, 12/7/16, "Climate change skeptic to head EPA..."

Posted by Kathy Meeh