Senate Democrats said Wednesday they appreciate Environmental Protection Agency Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler’s efforts to be more transparent with the public and Congress, and his ability in his first 25 days to avoid ethics scandals of the sort that felled his predecessor, Scott Pruitt.
“I gotta be honest with you: I am pleased the person sitting before us is the acting administrator, and not his predecessor,” said Sen. Tom Carper of Delaware, the top Democrat of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. “The damage Scott Pruitt has done to this agency cannot be easily undone. It is my hope and expectation you will carefully study the lessons of the past [as] you chart the agency’s future.”
[New EPA chief Andrew Wheeler is a ‘different person’ than scandal-plagued Scott Pruitt]
Wheeler testified before Congress on Wednesday for the first time since moving from his No. 2 role at EPA to the top spot.
Carper later offered Wheeler an olive branch, lightheartedly providing him a Coca-Cola bottle that he found in the Senate cafeteria that happened to have Wheeler’s name last name printed on it.
He credited Wheeler for publishing his calendar of daily events, opening EPA events to media, and working to “make sure EPA’s beleaguered career staff feel valued and included.”
Other Democrats echoed Carper’s praise.
“Although we don’t see eye to eye on most environmental issues, I believe you are making a good faith effort to reverse course at EPA and operate in a transparent manner,” said Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill. “This is a critical step towards restoring the public’s trust in EPA.”
Wheeler likely jelled with senators because he has experience working with many of them. He used to work as a staffer for Senate Republicans on the committee he testified before, and he has much more experience in environmental policy than Pruitt, who formerly served as the Republican attorney general of Oklahoma.
He also served at the EPA from 1991 to 1995 on toxic chemical issues.
Wheeler, however, made clear he would pursue Trump administration policies to roll back environmental regulations, an agenda Democrats continue to oppose.
“We haven’t slowed down and we haven’t missed a step,” Wheeler said. “We’re continuing the president’s agenda.”
The new EPA chief later vowed not to “pick winners and losers” among energy sources.
“I’ve always believed in ‘all of the above’ on energy sources, and I don’t believe it’s the EPA’s job to pick winners or losers,” Wheeler said. “It’s our responsibility to enact the laws Congress passes. We are trying very hard to be straight down the road.”
The phrasing rankled some Democrats, who fear Wheeler, like Pruitt, would favor industry, and be hesitant to impose regulations on fossil fuel emissions.
“How do you treat them equally when it’s EPA’s duty to protect against pollution?” said Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I. “How would a regulation that protected against pollution not advantage a non-polluting energy source over a polluting energy source?”
Wheeler tried to reply reassuringly: “We are regulating sources that pollute and have emissions.”
Wheeler also responded to concerns about his prior work lobbying for various companies in the energy industry, and whether he is following ethics pledges as acting EPA administrator.
“I have committed under both the Trump ethics pledge and ethics regulations to follow all the guidelines, and work with career ethics officials at the EPA,” Wheeler said. “I have not met with any of my clients who I represented two years prior [to working at EPA].”
