Sen. Doug Jones, D-Ala., said Sunday he suspected Scott Pruitt was “on his way out” of the Trump administration after it was revealed the Environmental Protection Agency administrator spent part of his first year in office living in a Washington townhouse co-owned by the wife of an energy lobbyist.
“I think he’s in real trouble,” Jones told ABC. “People are just frustrated with Cabinet members who seem to want to use taxpayer dollars to fund their own personal lifestyle.”
Should EPA Admin. Scott Pruitt resign? Alabama Senator @DougJones tells @GStephanopoulos: “I think he’s in real trouble… people are just frustrated with Cabinet members who seem to want to use taxpayer dollars to fund their own personal lifestyle.” #ThisWeek pic.twitter.com/44hPE6gcCD
— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) April 1, 2018
The condo Pruitt occupied is owned by a company that lists Vicki Hart, the wife of prominent Republican donor J. Steven Hart, as an owner. Steven Hart said his wife was not the majority owner of the property and it had been rented at market rate.
In addition, Jones expressed concerns about Trump’s new nominee to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs, hinting Ronny Jackson’s confirmation process could be plagued by questions based on “his lack of experience.”
While throwing his support behind expanding age limits for some forms of gun ownership, Jones also said he did not “believe that a gun ban is feasible right now.”
“We’ve got to get done what I think can be done right now,” Jones said, alluding to strengthening background checks and allowing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to conduct research into gun-related violence.
He added that he would encourage Democrats to hold open primaries in the lead-up to the 2018 and 2020 election cycles to counteract divisions within the party.
