Environmental Protection Agency chief Scott Pruitt helped the White House kick off a campaign Monday to celebrate the last “500 days of American Greatness,” which touts 22 actions by EPA to kill regulations.
[Trump celebrates 500 days in office: ‘We have accomplished a lot’]
“During @POTUS President Trump’s first 500 days in office, EPA issued 22 deregulatory actions that could save Americans up to $1 billion,” EPA tweeted Monday.
The agency sent out a statement that links to a March report that details the agency’s nearly two dozen actions to cut regulations. Top among those achievements is its proposal to repeal the Waters of the United States rule, the Clean Power Plan, and other climate regulations that businesses and conservatives have blasted as prime examples of federal overreach.
“President Trump has rolled back unnecessary job-killing regulations beyond expectations,” read a White House fact sheet. The regulations were “harming farmers and energy producers,” it read.
The rollback “far exceeded” Trump’s promise to “eliminate regulations at a two-to-one ratio” by issuing 22 deregulatory actions for every new regulatory action, the White House continued.
The EPA, in a separate statement, included withdrawing from the Paris climate change agreement as another major achievement in the last 500 days. The one-year anniversary of Trump’s June 1 decision to exit the deal was Friday.
Pruitt appeared on cable news outlets to tout the Trump decision. However, neither the president, nor the White House, said anything publicly to mark the occasion. Instead, Trump ordered Energy Secretary Rick Perry to save coal and nuclear power plants that are slated to close prematurely over the next three to four years. It’s a controversial order that is expected to land the administration in court.
The U.S. cannot technically withdraw from the climate agreement for another two years. The earliest Trump can withdraw from the deal is on Nov. 4, 2020, the day after the next presidential election.
Even the Clean Power Plan has not been repealed yet. It is still in the proposal phase which once finalized is expected to take EPA to court.
Meanwhile, Pruitt continues to face pressure over his running of the agency. On Monday morning, Democrats on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee said they are looking to subpoena the EPA for documents they believe will show Pruitt misused employees for personal errands, including the purchase of an old mattress from the Trump Hotel in Washington.
Pruitt continues to face ongoing investigations into lavish, first-class travel accommodations and security spending. Nevertheless, the White House continues to defend the EPA chief.
On Monday, when asked whether the new details about the mattress caused the president’s confidence in Pruitt to waiver, White House press secretary Sarah Sanders sidestepped the question.
“Certainly looking into the matter,” Sanders said. “I couldn’t comment on the specifics of the furniture used in his apartment … and certainly would not attempt to.”
