Sen. Bernie Sanders said Wednesday that President-elect Trump’s nominee to head the Environmental Protection Agency won’t get his support because of his lack of concern over the earthquakes in Oklahoma connected to fracking.
“If that’s the kind of EPA administrator you will be, you are not going to get my vote,” said the former Democratic candidate for president, after prodding Attorney General Scott Pruitt over his public stance regarding earthquakes in his state at a Wednesday confirmation hearing.
The Vermont independent asked Pruitt to point to any public opinion or statement he has made on any actions taken to address the practice of injecting the waste water from fracking, which has been blamed for causing a record number of earthquakes in the state.
Pruitt said that he is “very concerned” but that the authority rests with the state public service commission to address the issue, not his office. Sanders was not satisfied by the answer and took it as meaning that he has no interest in addressing the safety issue posed by the record number of quakes, which has been linked to the drilling practice known as fracking.
Sanders also drilled down on Pruitt over his personal views of whether or not climate change is manmade.
Pruitt answered: “Climate is changing and human activity contributes to that in some manner. It is subject to more debate.”
Sanders: “You’re telling me there is still debate. Why is the climate changing? I am asking your personal opinion.”
Pruitt: “Personal opinion is immaterial.”
Sanders: “Oh, really!”
Sanders said the vast majority of scientists indicate that climate change, caused by man, is occurring and is affecting the health of the planet, but was disappointed that the nominee to head the nation’s environmental regulator believes it is a debatable issue.
Pruitt conceded that Trump was wrong to call climate change a hoax and that the EPA does “have a role in regulating CO2,” but he also said there is some room for debate on the causes and what the solutions are for global warming.
