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This post may be updated.
The White House announced Thursday that Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt has resigned, following months of mounting scandals regarding his misuse of taxpayer funds for his lavish travel expenses, the extreme secrecy with which he ran the agency, his treatment of his staff, and other ethics controversies.
"This victory belongs to the hundreds of thousands of activists who fought to protect the EPA from a corrupt crony set on destroying it from the inside." --Erich Pica, Friends of the Earth
While Pruitt's management style and ethics-free behavior frequently threatened to distract from his activities as the nation's top official ostensibly in charge of safeguarding the environment, climate action groups and other green campaigners have repeatedly pointed to his aggressive efforts to undermine the EPA's stated mission while spearheading the Trump administration's overall effort to execute a massive giveaway to the fossil fuel industry and other corporate interests.
Friends of the Earth (FOE) called Pruitt's departure a "victory for people and the planet."
"Scott Pruitt's corruption and coziness with industry lobbyists finally caught up with him," said FOE president Erich Pica. "We're happy that Pruitt can no longer deceive Americans or destroy our environment. This victory belongs to the hundreds of thousands of activists who fought to protect the Environmental Protection Agency from a corrupt crony set on destroying it from the inside...We must work to remove every member of this administration who has abused their power and put polluter profits over people and the planet."
"Ethics matter," concluded Rhea Suh, president of the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC). "So does a commitment to the EPA's central mission. Pruitt failed miserably on both counts."
Wenonah Hauter, executive director of Food & Water Watch, also denounced Pruitt's rolling back of environmental protections aimed at keeping water safe for Americans to drink and air suitable to breathe.
"In an administration that is notorious for its corrupt approach to governing, Scott Pruitt's shamelessly self-enriching antics actually stood out," Hauter said. "Pruitt's systematic attack on the EPA itself, his devotion to polluting industries, and his disdain for American public health and environmental protections made him an unfit leader of the agency. His scandals were just icing on the cake. We say to Scott Pruitt: Good riddance."
"Scott Pruitt will go down in history as a disgrace to the office of EPA administrator," Ken Cook, head of the Environmental Working Group said in a statement, noting that the work of green groups fighting the Trump environmental agenda is far from over. "Sadly, the ideological fervor with which Pruitt pursued the destruction of environmental regulations and the agency itself live on in the Trump administration. So while Pruitt is gone...our resistance to all he stood for will continue undiminished."
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 |

This post may be updated.
The White House announced Thursday that Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt has resigned, following months of mounting scandals regarding his misuse of taxpayer funds for his lavish travel expenses, the extreme secrecy with which he ran the agency, his treatment of his staff, and other ethics controversies.
"This victory belongs to the hundreds of thousands of activists who fought to protect the EPA from a corrupt crony set on destroying it from the inside." --Erich Pica, Friends of the Earth
While Pruitt's management style and ethics-free behavior frequently threatened to distract from his activities as the nation's top official ostensibly in charge of safeguarding the environment, climate action groups and other green campaigners have repeatedly pointed to his aggressive efforts to undermine the EPA's stated mission while spearheading the Trump administration's overall effort to execute a massive giveaway to the fossil fuel industry and other corporate interests.
Friends of the Earth (FOE) called Pruitt's departure a "victory for people and the planet."
"Scott Pruitt's corruption and coziness with industry lobbyists finally caught up with him," said FOE president Erich Pica. "We're happy that Pruitt can no longer deceive Americans or destroy our environment. This victory belongs to the hundreds of thousands of activists who fought to protect the Environmental Protection Agency from a corrupt crony set on destroying it from the inside...We must work to remove every member of this administration who has abused their power and put polluter profits over people and the planet."
"Ethics matter," concluded Rhea Suh, president of the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC). "So does a commitment to the EPA's central mission. Pruitt failed miserably on both counts."
Wenonah Hauter, executive director of Food & Water Watch, also denounced Pruitt's rolling back of environmental protections aimed at keeping water safe for Americans to drink and air suitable to breathe.
"In an administration that is notorious for its corrupt approach to governing, Scott Pruitt's shamelessly self-enriching antics actually stood out," Hauter said. "Pruitt's systematic attack on the EPA itself, his devotion to polluting industries, and his disdain for American public health and environmental protections made him an unfit leader of the agency. His scandals were just icing on the cake. We say to Scott Pruitt: Good riddance."
"Scott Pruitt will go down in history as a disgrace to the office of EPA administrator," Ken Cook, head of the Environmental Working Group said in a statement, noting that the work of green groups fighting the Trump environmental agenda is far from over. "Sadly, the ideological fervor with which Pruitt pursued the destruction of environmental regulations and the agency itself live on in the Trump administration. So while Pruitt is gone...our resistance to all he stood for will continue undiminished."

This post may be updated.
The White House announced Thursday that Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt has resigned, following months of mounting scandals regarding his misuse of taxpayer funds for his lavish travel expenses, the extreme secrecy with which he ran the agency, his treatment of his staff, and other ethics controversies.
"This victory belongs to the hundreds of thousands of activists who fought to protect the EPA from a corrupt crony set on destroying it from the inside." --Erich Pica, Friends of the Earth
While Pruitt's management style and ethics-free behavior frequently threatened to distract from his activities as the nation's top official ostensibly in charge of safeguarding the environment, climate action groups and other green campaigners have repeatedly pointed to his aggressive efforts to undermine the EPA's stated mission while spearheading the Trump administration's overall effort to execute a massive giveaway to the fossil fuel industry and other corporate interests.
Friends of the Earth (FOE) called Pruitt's departure a "victory for people and the planet."
"Scott Pruitt's corruption and coziness with industry lobbyists finally caught up with him," said FOE president Erich Pica. "We're happy that Pruitt can no longer deceive Americans or destroy our environment. This victory belongs to the hundreds of thousands of activists who fought to protect the Environmental Protection Agency from a corrupt crony set on destroying it from the inside...We must work to remove every member of this administration who has abused their power and put polluter profits over people and the planet."
"Ethics matter," concluded Rhea Suh, president of the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC). "So does a commitment to the EPA's central mission. Pruitt failed miserably on both counts."
Wenonah Hauter, executive director of Food & Water Watch, also denounced Pruitt's rolling back of environmental protections aimed at keeping water safe for Americans to drink and air suitable to breathe.
"In an administration that is notorious for its corrupt approach to governing, Scott Pruitt's shamelessly self-enriching antics actually stood out," Hauter said. "Pruitt's systematic attack on the EPA itself, his devotion to polluting industries, and his disdain for American public health and environmental protections made him an unfit leader of the agency. His scandals were just icing on the cake. We say to Scott Pruitt: Good riddance."
"Scott Pruitt will go down in history as a disgrace to the office of EPA administrator," Ken Cook, head of the Environmental Working Group said in a statement, noting that the work of green groups fighting the Trump environmental agenda is far from over. "Sadly, the ideological fervor with which Pruitt pursued the destruction of environmental regulations and the agency itself live on in the Trump administration. So while Pruitt is gone...our resistance to all he stood for will continue undiminished."