EPA watchdog expanding probe into Pruitt's air travel: Under Investigation for Morocco Trip
Crooked Trump Admin!
EPA Chief Scott Pruitt Under Investigation for Morocco Trip
http://www.newsweek.com/scott-pruitt-epa-investigation-morocco-777689
By Alexander Nazaryan On 1/11/18 at 1:34 AM
In December, an American official travelled to the North African nation of Morocco, where he promoted trade in liquified natural gas. The official was not in private industry, nor part of a Department of Energy delegation. Instead, he was Scott Pruitt, administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. Now, Pruitt is facing investigation for that trip by his own agency's inspector general.
The development was first reported by the Washington Examiner.
Pruitt was already being probed for his frequent trips to Oklahoma, where some believe he is laying the groundwork for a senatorial or gubernatorial campaign. His flights to the Sooner State alone, on either private or military craft, have cost American taxpayers $58,000, according to a Washington Post report.
The trip to Morocco lasted four days and cost $40,000. Pruitt was reportedly accompanied by four other officials from the EPA. After the trip came to light, Pruitt said that he was in Morocco to discuss how to "enhance environmental stewardship around the world." Responding to a Newsweek query about the trip, EPA spokesman Jahan Wilcox pointed to a press release dated December 12.
But for critics, Pruitt's natural gas boosterism remained a troubling aspect of the trip, especially given his friendliness with private industry — and stated antipathy to regulation. Pruitt's native Oklahoma, after all, is the third-biggest producer of natural gas in the United States after Texas and Pennsylvania, and Pruitt is well liked by the state's energy sector, which formed a significant part of his donor base when he was an elected official there. Moreover, Morocco is building a $4.6 billion natural gas terminal near the Atlantic port of El Jadida. Morocco and the United States trade under the U.S.-Morocco Free Trade Agreement, signed in 2004........................................
Khorri Atkinson 9 hours ago
EPA watchdog expanding probe into Pruitt's air travel
EPA Administrator Pruitt. Aaron P. Bernstein/Getty Images
The Environmental Protection Agency’s internal inspector general said in an internal memo that he is expanding his investigation into agency head Scott Pruitt’s air travel. A probe last year had found Pruitt's "non-commercial" flights between June and August cost taxpayers more than $58,000.
Why it matters: Pruitt and other Trump administration officials have been under scrutiny for flying charter, military or private jets paid for by taxpayers. According to the memo, published online on Wednesday, the decision to expand the scope of the probe through the end of 2017 came in response to “additional congressional requests.”
Go deeper: The Trump officials caught splurging on luxury travel.............................
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