The US Senate confirmed Oklahoma Atty. Gen. Scott Pruitt’s (R) nomination to be US Environmental Protection Agency administrator by 52 to 46 votes on Feb. 17. The action quickly followed a rejection by 51 to 47 votes of Democrats’ call for a delay to review more than 2,500 letters and e-mails Oklahoma County Court Judge Aletia Haynes Timmons ordered Pruitt’s office to release a day earlier.
Oil and gas trade association leaders immediately welcomed the news. Environmental groups said he will be the most dangerous EPA administrator ever.
Senate Democrats argued that the vote should be delayed because the correspondence after Timmons gave Pruitt’s office until Feb. 21 to turn over correspondence the Center for Media and Democracy have sought since January 2015, and 10 days to turn over more documents in response to five other open records requests filed from November 2015 to August 2016.
The documents could show that Pruitt had an inappropriately close relationship with companies in the fossil fuels industry while he was Oklahoma’s top legal officer, the Democrats declared after working through the night on the Senate floor to show why they believed the confirmation vote should be delayed.
“It’s not the worst thing in the world to take a few extra days to properly vet someone who will have charge of the agency that protects our air, sea, and sky,” Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (NY) said. “I urge my Republican colleagues to stop rushing this nomination and collect the relevant information we need to consider it.”
Thomas R. Carper (Del.) said, “I take no joy in discord. I also get no joy in rising sea levels and growing pollution. I take no joy from nominees who take thousands of questions and give no responses We’re prepared to vote here with incomplete information and missing the wisdom we’d get if we waited 10 days.”
Former EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy waited 132 days to be confirmed, Carper noted. “We’re seeking the truth. I have no interest in obstruction,” Carper said.
Would restore balance
Republicans responded that Pruitt, who sued EPA several times as Oklahoma’s AG, would restore balance to a federal agency that has pursued its mission too aggressively for the past 8 years.
“Democrats are just wasting time. They’re not protecting the environment,” Environment and Public Works Committee Chairman John A. Barrasso (Wyo.) said. “Agencies like EPA need leaders in place. We’ve heard a lot about…Pruitt’s qualifications to lead EPA. During his six years as Oklahoma’s AG, he has stood up to polluters and worked across state lines to protect the environment.”
Orrin G. Hatch (Utah) said, “I’ve long held that EPA can fulfill its mission of protecting the environment without harming the economy. But to do this, it will require a massive culture change.”
Oil and gas groups responded favorably after Pruitt’s confirmation vote. “His experience and leadership skills will be an asset to EPA and the country,” American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers Pres. Chet Thompson said. “We are confident that…Pruitt understands that environmental protection, economic growth, and energy security are not mutually exclusive, but rather require reasonable balancing.”
Independent Petroleum Association of America Pres. Barry Russell said, “Having a clear and fair regulatory framework is critical for independent producers, companies that work every day to safely produce the energy we all rely upon while ensuring the environment is protected, conserved, and restored in a balanced, commonsense manner.”
Contact Nick Snow at [email protected].
