Some top Republicans are starting to turn on Scott Pruitt. But it's not the EPA chiefâs numerous ethical scandals causing their distaste. Itâs his environmental regulation policies, especially in relation to business.Pruitt is facing scrutiny for his use of a super-expensive security detail and his ties to lobbyists (including renting a condo from the wife of an energy lobbyist with business before the EPA). But those scandals arenât concerning for most Republicans, whoâve brushed them aside during public hearings, including one before the Senate Appropriations Committee on Wednesday. Just four Republicans in Congress have called for Pruitt to resign, compared to 170 Democrats.Read: Scott Pruitt is the target of no less than 10 federal investigationsWhatâs starting to attract some conservative scorn, however, is Pruittâs slash-and-burn approach to environmental regulations, which some prominent GOPers claim undermine the same business-friendly policies that Pruittâs EPA has sought to put forward. Two Republican leaders, Sens. Chuck Grassley and Richard Burr, have both recently criticized Pruitt over the effects of his deregulation plans. Both Burr and Grassley are staunch conservatives who voted to approve Pruitt as head of the EPA, and pressure from them carries a lot of weight.In public hearings, Republicans have gone relatively easy on Pruitt, especially compared to Democrats. During his appearance before the Senate on Wednesday, for example, Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska was the only Republican to bring up the scandals â and she gave Pruitt an opportunity to defend himself.âInstead of seeing articles about efforts to return your agency to its core mission, Iâm reading articles about your interactions with the industries that you regulate,â she said. âDo you have anything you would like to add in response?âPruitt stressed, as he has before, that heâs made mistakes, but he placed the blame on his staffers.Outside of public hearings, some Republicans are beginning to grumble about Pruittâs approach to policymaking. On Tuesday, Grassley threatened to call for Pruittâs resignation if Pruitt didnât scale back the EPAâs use of environmental waivers for small oil refineries. The waivers mean the refineries donât have to blend their fuel with ethanol, a corn-based fuel that Grassleyâs state of Iowa produces in huge quantities.
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Burr also has pushed back on one of Pruittâs policies â along with Republican Sens. Shelley Moore Capito, Todd Young, and Thom Tillis. They sent Pruittâs office a letter last month urging him not to repeal an Obama-era trucking regulation aimed at limiting harmful emissions.Pollution was not the top concern for either Grassley or Burr. Instead, theyâre worried about âregulatory certainty,â a phrase Grassley used in his letter and one that Pruitt himself repeatedly uses in championing his policies. For those who donât speak D.C.-ese, the idea is that businesses plan ahead based on existing regulations, and when those regulations are ripped up and thrown into uncertainty, planning is harder to do.Businesses have begun to bring forward this criticism, too. Pruittâs repeal of the Obama-era emissions standards have the auto industry concerned about the future of the regulations; the vigorous federal attack on emissions standards also could provoke a fight with California, which sets its own emissions standards. A lengthy legal battle with California wouldnât be good for the car business.In statement after statement, EPA spokesperson Jahan Wilcox has answered questions from the press with this cut-and-paste response: âAdministrator Pruitt is focused on advancing President Trump's agenda of regulatory certainty and environmental stewardship.â Reshaping a regulatory agency, it turns out, may not always provide the regulatory certainty Pruitt so prizes.Cover image: Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt testifies before a Senate Appropriations subcommittee on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, May 16, 2018. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)