3 former Republican EPA chiefs give current agency a 'D' grade

They've been there and done that and now they're disappointed with the work of their successors.

Three former Republican heads of the Environmental Protection Agency told ABC News on Tuesday that the current EPA under the Trump administration deserves a D grade, or maybe "a little lower" for its work. Christine Whitman, William Reilly, and Lee Thomas, who led the agency under former Presidents George W. Bush, George H.W. Bush, and Ronald Reagan, respectively, all agreed that the EPA's current leadership is supporting the "undermining of science" and taking a potentially "catastrophic" approach to climate change. They all also said they were concerned that the U.S. is heading toward undoing its recent gains in cleaner air and water.

"You need an agency that is credible, has consistency in its rule making, and is science-based," Thomas said, adding that he believes his old boss, Reagan, would want the agency to recommit to its original purpose.

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Whitman and Reilly also both expressed excitement about the Green New Deal — at least in the sense that it has helped bring environmental policy to the forefront of the current political discourse.

The trio were in Washington to testify before a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee hearing on Tuesday, where they were also joined by another former EPA chief, Gina McCarthy, who led the agency under former President Barack Obama. Read more at ABC News.