SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
EPA chief testifies during his confirmation hearing before the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works on Capitol Hill January 18, 2017 in Washington, D.C. (Photo: Aaron P. Bernstein/Getty Images)
Soundproof Booth Cannot 'Hide Illegal Actions' as GAO Probe Says Pruitt Violated Federal Law
"It's simple: Pruitt broke the law, and no amount of excuses can save him now."
Apr 16, 2018
As pressure on EPA chief Scott Pruitt to resign mounts amid his ever-growing list of scandals, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) concluded on Monday that the $43,000 soundproof phone booth Pruitt had installed in his office last year at the taxpayer's expense violated federal spending laws.
"Not even Scott Pruitt's secure phone booth can hide his illegal actions."
--Michael Brune, Sierra ClubFederal law prohibits goverment agencies from dishing out more than $5,000 to "furnish, redecorate, purchase furniture for, or make improvements for the office of a presidential appointee during the period of appointment without prior notification to the appropriations committees of Congress."
Because the EPA failed to inform Congress about the soundproof booth, the agency "used its appropriations in a manner specifically prohibited by law," the GAO concluded in an eight-page report made public on Monday.
Pruitt insisted that the "privacy" booth was necessary for him to "make and receive calls to discuss sensitive information."
Highlighting the fact that there are currently at least 11 government investigations into Pruitt's "mounting list of ethical and now legal violations," Sierra Club executive director Michael Brune said in a statement on Monday that "not even Scott Pruitt's secure phone booth can hide his illegal actions."
"It's simple: Pruitt broke the law, and no amount of excuses can save him now," Brune added. "Donald Trump shouldn't wait to see what ethical norm or law Pruitt breaks next. He must fire him immediately."
As Common Dreams has reported, Pruitt is also under fire for flying first-class to avoid being criticized by people who don't like that he's destroying the planet, renting a room from a prominent lobbyist for $50 a night, and lying about raises he attempted to give his two favorite aides.
Despite growing calls for Pruitt to either step down or be fired, President Donald Trump has stood by his EPA chief, telling him to "keep [his] head up" as he implements the White House's pro-fossil fuel agenda.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
As pressure on EPA chief Scott Pruitt to resign mounts amid his ever-growing list of scandals, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) concluded on Monday that the $43,000 soundproof phone booth Pruitt had installed in his office last year at the taxpayer's expense violated federal spending laws.
"Not even Scott Pruitt's secure phone booth can hide his illegal actions."
--Michael Brune, Sierra ClubFederal law prohibits goverment agencies from dishing out more than $5,000 to "furnish, redecorate, purchase furniture for, or make improvements for the office of a presidential appointee during the period of appointment without prior notification to the appropriations committees of Congress."
Because the EPA failed to inform Congress about the soundproof booth, the agency "used its appropriations in a manner specifically prohibited by law," the GAO concluded in an eight-page report made public on Monday.
Pruitt insisted that the "privacy" booth was necessary for him to "make and receive calls to discuss sensitive information."
Highlighting the fact that there are currently at least 11 government investigations into Pruitt's "mounting list of ethical and now legal violations," Sierra Club executive director Michael Brune said in a statement on Monday that "not even Scott Pruitt's secure phone booth can hide his illegal actions."
"It's simple: Pruitt broke the law, and no amount of excuses can save him now," Brune added. "Donald Trump shouldn't wait to see what ethical norm or law Pruitt breaks next. He must fire him immediately."
As Common Dreams has reported, Pruitt is also under fire for flying first-class to avoid being criticized by people who don't like that he's destroying the planet, renting a room from a prominent lobbyist for $50 a night, and lying about raises he attempted to give his two favorite aides.
Despite growing calls for Pruitt to either step down or be fired, President Donald Trump has stood by his EPA chief, telling him to "keep [his] head up" as he implements the White House's pro-fossil fuel agenda.
As pressure on EPA chief Scott Pruitt to resign mounts amid his ever-growing list of scandals, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) concluded on Monday that the $43,000 soundproof phone booth Pruitt had installed in his office last year at the taxpayer's expense violated federal spending laws.
"Not even Scott Pruitt's secure phone booth can hide his illegal actions."
--Michael Brune, Sierra ClubFederal law prohibits goverment agencies from dishing out more than $5,000 to "furnish, redecorate, purchase furniture for, or make improvements for the office of a presidential appointee during the period of appointment without prior notification to the appropriations committees of Congress."
Because the EPA failed to inform Congress about the soundproof booth, the agency "used its appropriations in a manner specifically prohibited by law," the GAO concluded in an eight-page report made public on Monday.
Pruitt insisted that the "privacy" booth was necessary for him to "make and receive calls to discuss sensitive information."
Highlighting the fact that there are currently at least 11 government investigations into Pruitt's "mounting list of ethical and now legal violations," Sierra Club executive director Michael Brune said in a statement on Monday that "not even Scott Pruitt's secure phone booth can hide his illegal actions."
"It's simple: Pruitt broke the law, and no amount of excuses can save him now," Brune added. "Donald Trump shouldn't wait to see what ethical norm or law Pruitt breaks next. He must fire him immediately."
As Common Dreams has reported, Pruitt is also under fire for flying first-class to avoid being criticized by people who don't like that he's destroying the planet, renting a room from a prominent lobbyist for $50 a night, and lying about raises he attempted to give his two favorite aides.
Despite growing calls for Pruitt to either step down or be fired, President Donald Trump has stood by his EPA chief, telling him to "keep [his] head up" as he implements the White House's pro-fossil fuel agenda.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.