US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) chief Scott Pruitt has resigned, amid more than a dozen separate investigations over spending, ethics and management.
In a resignation letter released by the EPA, Pruitt said he was stepping down because of “unrelenting attacks on me personally, [and] my family”, which are “unprecedented and have taken a sizable toll on all of us.”
However, the Washington Post reports that Pruitt was told by the White House that he “had to submit his resignation”, and that Trump did not speak with Pruitt personally.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Trump later told reporters that the decision to resign had been Pruitt’s, and that there was “no final straw” that led to the decision.
“He came to me and said, ‘I have such great confidence in the administration. I don’t want to be a distraction,’” Trump said. “And I think Scott felt that he was a distraction.”
CNN says “an ethics cloud hung over Pruitt for months”, with lawmakers from both parties raising questions about his spending, housing arrangements, personal security detail and large pay rises for political appointees.
Pruitt was being investigated over his rental of a furnished room in a townhouse close to the US Capitol for $50 a night. The building is owned by the wife of an energy industry lobbyist.
The former EPA chief was also under investigation for lavish spending on office improvements, including “$5,800 on thumb-print security locks, $1,560 for 12 fountain pens and $43,000 for a soundproof phone booth”, the BBC says.
Senator Thomas Carper, the top Democrat on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, hailed Pruitt’s departure, saying: “He’s done a lot of damage. It can be reversed, but it’s going to take some time.”
-
August 31 editorial cartoonsCartoons Sunday’s political cartoons include FEMA's new scheme, Gavin Newsom's antics, and a clue in the Epstein files
-
Disarming Hezbollah: Lebanon's risky missionTalking Point Iran-backed militia has brought 'nothing but war, division and misery', but rooting them out for good is a daunting and dangerous task
-
Woof! Britain's love affair with dogsThe Explainer The UK's canine population is booming. What does that mean for man's best friend?
-
China is silently expanding its influence in American citiesUnder the Radar New York City and San Francisco, among others, have reportedly been targeted
-
How China uses 'dark fleets' to circumvent trade sanctionsThe Explainer The fleets are used to smuggle goods like oil and fish
-
One year after mass protests, why are Kenyans taking to the streets again?today's big question More than 60 protesters died during demonstrations in 2024
-
What happens if tensions between India and Pakistan boil over?TODAY'S BIG QUESTION As the two nuclear-armed neighbors rattle their sabers in the wake of a terrorist attack on the contested Kashmir region, experts worry that the worst might be yet to come
-
Why Russia removed the Taliban's terrorist designationThe Explainer Russia had designated the Taliban as a terrorist group over 20 years ago
-
Inside the Israel-Turkey geopolitical dance across SyriaTHE EXPLAINER As Syria struggles in the wake of the Assad regime's collapse, its neighbors are carefully coordinating to avoid potential military confrontations
-
'Like a sound from hell': Serbia and sonic weaponsThe Explainer Half a million people sign petition alleging Serbian police used an illegal 'sound cannon' to disrupt anti-government protests
-
The arrest of the Philippines' former president leaves the country's drug war in disarrayIn the Spotlight Rodrigo Duterte was arrested by the ICC earlier this month
