Democratic Sen. Ed Markey of Massachusetts used the president-elect’s brand of “Trump Water” to prod Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency nominee to lead the agency over protecting clean water.
“Trump Water,” Markey recited to Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt is “natural, spring water. On the label it says pure, fresh and free from contaminants. This is water the way it was meant to be.” The senator held up a bottle of Trump’s branded water in reciting the marketing in a long set-up for a fairly short line of questions.
He then went on to say that Trump hotel guests have “the luxury of drinking this water if they don’t trust what comes out of the tap.” Low-income communities, on the other hand “do not have the same luxury,” the senator said.
“Do you believe that the EPA plays a critical role in ensuring that all Americans regardless of racial, ethnic or economic backgrounds have a right to clean water free from contaminants?” he then asked.
Pruitt responded, “absolutely,” noting that he has met with Democrats to assure them that he will protect all Americans’ drinking water. “I believe it’s a very important role of the EPA adminsitrator.”
As the Flint, Mich., lead contamination scandal “reminds us,” low-income areas often “bear far greater environmental burdens,” Markey said.
Markey was cut off by Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, and was not allowed to go further in his questioning for lack of time.
