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Sen. Carper grills Pruitt on litigation against EPA

Delaware Public Media

Sen. Tom Carper (D-Delaware) grilled President-elect Trump’s pick to head the Environmental Protection Agency Wednesday on Capitol Hill.

Heading into Wednesday's hearing, Delaware’s senior senator said he has “great reservations” about Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt’s commitment to protect the environment.

 

Carper’s line of questioning focused almost exclusively on litigation Pruitt has filed against the EPA over its regulation of mercury.

 

Carper: “As attorney general I believe you’ve been part of at least 14 legal cases against the EPA and at least three of these cases against the EPA’s rules to reduce mercury emissions from power plants. Is that correct, yes or no?”

 

Pruitt: “We’ve been involved in litigation around the Mercury and Air Toxic Standards (MATS) Rule.”

 

Carper: “Yes or no?”

 

Pruitt: “Yes, as I indicated, we’ve been a part of litigation involving the MATS rule.”  

 

Pruitt later clarified that his litigation was focused on the process the EPA used for regulating mercury, not whether mercury was dangerous.

 

Following a meeting with Pruitt earlier this month, Carper said his main concerns with the nominee are his reluctance to accept climate change and his downplaying of the dangers of mercury.

 

Carper said he hasn't yet made a decision whether to support Pruitt or not, following Wednesday's hearing. 

 

Meanwhile, Sen. Chris Coons said he’s still deciding whether to support Rex Tillerson’s nomination as Secretary of State.

 

Coons, who sits on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said Tillerson both calmed and stoked his fears during a nine-hour hearing last week.

 

Delaware’s junior senator told MSNBC Tuesday he liked that Tillerson disagrees with President-elect Trump's positions on the Paris Climate Agreement and the importance of NATO.

 

“But on human rights and on climate change, in response to withering questions from Sen. Marco Rubio and others he didn’t do so well. So I certainly think his confirmation is uncertain at this point and is largely in the hands of a few undecided members,” he said. 

 

Republican Marco Rubio appears to be the deciding vote on Tillerson’s nomination in the Foreign Relations Committee.  

 

In regards to other cabinet-member confirmations, Coons says he still hasn’t decided if he’ll approve South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley as ambassador the United Nations, after a confirmation hearing Wednesday.

 

He said he’ll vote against Jeff Sessions as Attorney General. 

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