Tendering his resignation today, 50-year-old embattled Environmental Protection Agency Director Scott Pruitt called it quits, becoming President’s latest Cabinet official to resign in disgrace. Pruitt became his own worst enemy abusing the job’s perks, flying first class, racking up exorbitant expenses running the EPA. When ABC News broke a story last March about Pruitt’s extravagant travel and security expenses, he became radioactive, an embarrassment to the White House. If there’s anything that gets you fired by Trump, it’s conspicuous consumption at taxpayers’ expense, something that runs counter to Trump’s overarching principle of saving taxpayers’ hard-earned money. Pruitt was one of Democrats and their media friends’ favorite targets, hoping to ride the scandals right to the November Midterm elections. Pruitt was unapologetic over his extravagant spending habits.
Since taking his Cabinet post Feb. 17. 2017, Pruitt was a lightening rod for the environmental movement, lambasted for backing Trump’s June 1, 2017 pullout of the Paris Climate Accord. EU officials refused to let Trump re-negotiate the agreement, fulfilling a campaign promise to get out of former President Barack Obama’s April 22, 2016 agreement. Like the Iranian Nuke Deal that Trump vacated May 8, the Paris Climate Agreement harmed U.S. coal miners, hoping to jumpstart a moribund industry. Whether or not Trump puts unemployed coal miners back to work is anyone’s guess. Trump’s decision to pull out the Paris Climate Agreement had symbolic value to his base in Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ohio. Pruitt reluctantly resigned despite enormous pressure on him, not from the environmental lobby but from Trump himself, seeing Pruitt as a loose cannon.
Taking over from Pruit, former coal industry executive Deputy EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler is bound to antagonize the environmental lobby. But whatever Pruitt’s views on coal, climate change or anything else, it was his extravagant expense account that did him in. “It is extremely difficult for me to cease serving you [Turmp] in this role first because I count it a blessing to be serving you in any capacity, but also because the transformative work occurring,” Pruitt wrote in his resignation letter. Pruitt got the ax because he became EPA’s primary news story, not work performed to advance Trump’s environment agenda. According to former EPA policy chief Samantha Davis, Pruitt had his eyes of Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions’ job. Pruitt was hated by the environmental lobby for trying to reverse many of the protections enacted during the Obama White House, including Detroit’s fuel economy standards.
When Pruitt’s expense account was scrutinized it showed costly first-class trips and work on a soundproof booth for making phone calls. Pruitt developed close relations to the domestic oil industry while serving as Oklahoma Attorney Genera, filling numerous lawsuits against the EPA. “Despite his brief tenure, Pruitt was the worst EPA chief in history,” said Kieran Suckling, executive director of the Center for Biological Diversity. “His corruption was his downfall, but his pro-polluter policies will have our kids breathing dirtier air long after his many scandals are forgotten,” talking about how much Pruitt was despised by environmentalists. Trump liked Pruitt’s backing when he took the unpopular stance of backing out of the 2016 Paris Climate Accord. Trump’s decision to bail was due to harm done to U.S. industry, not an objection to reining in environmental protections.
Why Pruitt needed a $3 million, 20-man, 24/7 security detail is anyone’s guess, other than the kind of paranoia from getting chased by the anti-Trump paparazzi. Pruitt wasn’t too liked by his staff who he instructed to pick up his dry cleaning. ABC News reported last March that Pruitt was leasing back a condo for $50 a day from a coal industry lobbyist. Instead to praising Trump’s decision to fire Pruitt, liberal groups and the media blamed Trump for employing someone so corrupt. “Mr. Puritt’s brazen abuse of his position for his own personal gain has been absolutely astounding, rivaled on by the silence of far to many in Congress and in the White House who allowed Pruitt’s unethical, and, at times, possibly illegal behavior to go unchecked,” said Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.). Democrats point to Trump’s latest firing as proof of White House chaos, not cleaning house.
Democrats can’t have it both ways: Complaining about Trump’s Cabinet picks then making a good faith effort to correct the mistake. Pruitt showed total disregard to the kind of scrutiny that comes with Cabinet picks. No Cabinet official, including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, can expect extravagant spenders like Pruitt to go through the office unscathed. “History will not look kindly on this era, neither on Mr. Pruitt’s entirely irresponsible tenure, nor on Congress abdications of its constitutional responsibilities all in order to protect political allies,” said Carper. Pruitt embarrassed the president one more time because he put his own needs before the country. Before Trump’s Cabinet picks take a job, they should consider the political fallout from personal extravagance. With the president trying to save money of U.S. taxpayers, Pruitt did the White House harm with his over-spending.
