Pruitt’s Secret Calendar May Break the Law

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Yesterday, reporting by CNN, Washington Post, and the New York Times shows more corruption, and possible law breaking, from EPA administrator Scott Pruitt. Trump Administration whistleblowers indicate that Pruitt and his aides kept "secret" calendars and schedules, routinely “scrubbing them” to hide controversial meetings and calls with representatives of corporate polluters and disgraced figures like Cardinal George Pell. This potentially illegal activity was discovered when CNN compared Pruitt’s publicly released calendar with calendars secured by the Sierra Club and others via FOIA litigation. New reports also show that Pruitt asked his taxpayer-funded staff to find a six-figure job for his wife, to perform personal tasks for Pruitt, and to seek high-end travel for Pruitt despite aides’ objections. Meanwhile, Pruitt reportedly failed to reimburse his own 25-year old staffer who booked his personal travel expenses on her credit card.

In response, Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune released the following statement:

"Scott Pruitt proves with each passing day that he thinks he is immune from the laws, the ethical standards, and the basic sense of decency that applies to everyone else. How else can you explain Pruitt’s blatant efforts to scrub his calendar of controversial meetings, his waste of taxpayer resources to enrich himself, and even his disgraceful refusal to reimburse his own employees? These secret calendars and testimony from EPA staff expose a deeply rooted culture of corruption surrounding Scott Pruitt and his dealings in essentially every aspect of his job. Pruitt is a danger to taxpayers and an embarrassment to this administration.”