Scott Pruitt Goes After Critics, EPA In His First Speech To The Agency

Environmental Protection Agency chief Scott Pruitt mentioned a toxic environment just once during his first address Tuesday to the embattled agency staff.

But he wasnt talking about industry pollution or conserving nature. He was referring to his critics political rhetoric.

Forgive the reference, but its a very toxic environment, the controversial new administrator said in the speech, which lasted under 20 minutes.

Civility is something I believe in very much, he added. We ought to be able to get together and wrestle through some issues in a civil manner.

Then, at last, he began to outline his vision for the EPA. He described an agency that prioritized making it easier for polluters to comply with regulations. He promised to listen intently to companies before saddling them with new regulations. He admonished his new employees, some fearing layoffs amid looming budget cuts, for acting outside the agencys legal mandate and running roughshod over states rights.

Regulations ought to make things regular, Pruitt said. Regulations exist to give certainty to those they regulate. Those we regulate ought to know whats expected of them so they can place and allocate resources to comply.

He did not mention climate change or environmental destruction.

Pruitt, the former attorney general of Oklahoma, was sworn in last Friday after the Senate voted 52-46 to confirm his nomination. His confirmation came a day after Judge Aletia Haynes Timmons of the District Court of Oklahoma County ruled that the Oklahoma attorney generals office must turn over more than 2,500 emails and correspondence between Pruitt and oil and gas firms. The ruling was in response to a lawsuit from watchdog group Center for Media and Democracy and the American Civil Liberties Union alleging that his office had violated Oklahomas open records law .

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