Rep. Trey Gowdy doesn’t “have a lot of patience” for Environmental Protection Agency head Scott Pruitt’s ethical indiscretions.
Rep. Trey Gowdy doesn’t “have a lot of patience” for Environmental Protection Agency head Scott Pruitt’s ethical indiscretions.
The House Oversight Committee chairman is probing the embattled EPA administrator as calls for Pruitt’s resignation rise, a spokeswoman for the South Carolina Republican told CNN on Saturday.
Pruitt has come under fire for renting a Capitol Hill condo from the wife of a fossil fuel lobbyist, spending taxpayer money on first-class travel accommodations and security, greenlighting pay raises for aides without White House approval and reassigning subordinates who question his management style.
“I don’t have a lot patience for that kind of stuff,” Gowdy told activists at a book signing, according to a video shot by activists on Friday and released by Friends of the Earth.
Pruitt has faced scrutiny for his penchant for first-class travel and a 20-member full-time security detail that tails him even on family vacations.
A source within the agency told the Associated Press that total security costs for the high-flying agency head approached $3 million when pay is added to travel expenses.
EPA spokesman Jahan Wilcox said late Friday that Pruitt has faced an “unprecedented” amount of death threats against him and his family.
“Americans should all agree that members of the President’s cabinet should be kept safe from these violent threats,” Wilcox said.
Pruitt also ordered a $43,000 soundproof phone booth for his office that was paid for by taxpayers.
Gowdy said that a public servant must “be a good steward” of taxpayer money, Politico noted in first reporting the video.
Pruitt’s close relationship with oil industry insiders and fossil fuel lobbyists has angered environmentalists, but endeared him with President Trump.
The two met at the White House on Friday.
Some close Trump aides, including White House chief of staff John Kelly, have advocated firing him, but the President has resisted.
In addition to the congressional committee looking into his questionable spending habits, reviews of Pruitt’s conduct are being carried out by White House officials and the EPA’s inspector general.
