Scott Pruitt Resigns From The EPA Amid Ethics Scandals | HuffPost Latest News

Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt s controversial tenure ended amid a five-month whirlwind of ethics scandals and at least 18 federal investigations.

President Donald Trump announced Pruitts resignation in a series of tweets late Thursday afternoon, praising the administrator and Andrew Wheeler, the EPAs No. 2, who will now serve as acting administrator.

I have accepted the resignation of Scott Pruitt as the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. Within the Agency Scott has done an outstanding job, and I will always be thankful to him for this. The Senate confirmed Deputy at EPA, Andrew Wheeler, will...

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I have accepted the resignation of Scott Pruitt as the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. Within the Agency Scott has done an outstanding job, and I will always be thankful to him for this. The Senate confirmed Deputy at EPA, Andrew Wheeler, will...
Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 5, 2018

...on Monday assume duties as the acting Administrator of the EPA. I have no doubt that Andy will continue on with our great and lasting EPA agenda. We have made tremendous progress and the future of the EPA is very bright!

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...on Monday assume duties as the acting Administrator of the EPA. I have no doubt that Andy will continue on with our great and lasting EPA agenda. We have made tremendous progress and the future of the EPA is very bright!
Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 5, 2018

It is extremely difficult for me to cease serving you in this role first because I count it a blessing to be serving you in any capacity, but also, because of the transformative work that is occurring, Pruitt said in his resignation letter, according to Fox News . However the unrelenting attacks on me personally, my family, are unprecedented and have taken a sizable toll on all of us.

Speaking to reporters on Air Force One later Thursday, Trump said he and the embattled EPA chief had been discussing a possible resignation for a little while, but that the ultimate decision was entirely Pruitts.

I think Scott felt that he was a distraction, the president said, according to a pool report. Hell go on to great things and hes going to have a wonderful life, I hope. But he felt that he did not want to be a distraction for an administration that he has a lot of faith in.

During his nearly 17 months in office, Pruitt, 50, sought to dramatically remake the EPA, contracting the budget, eliminating landmark regulations and politicizing scientific research, giving industry an outsize role in shaping the federal rules by which it plays. He played a decisive part in convincing President Donald Trump to withdraw the United States from the Paris climate accord.

The sudden exit of the nations 14th and second-shortest-serving EPA administrator curtails the ambitious ascent of a career politician. Pruitt, who made his name on the national stage by repeatedly suing to block EPA regulations as Oklahomas attorney general, flirted with becoming Trumps next attorney general and was said to be considering a run for Senate or governor in the Sooner State. Allies said Pruitt plotted a run for the presidency as early as 2024.