JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Missouri’s GOP lawmakers really want to see President-elect Donald Trump’s pick, Scott Pruitt, take over the Environmental Protection Agenc (EPA).
In fact, they’ve now filed two resolutions in the Missouri Senate and House to get the ball rolling.
Missouri State Senator Gary Romine of Farmington and State Representative Travis Fitzwater of Holts Summit filed Senate Resolution 28 and House Resolution 12, urging the U.S. Senate to confirm the Oklahoma Attorney General as the next administrator of the EPA.
“As a State Senator who represents an area of Missouri with a rich tradition of natural resource production, I have seen firsthand the devastating impact of the overreach of President Obama’s EPA,” Romine said in a news release. “Attorney General Pruitt has received bipartisan praise for his balanced approach to environmental protection in Oklahoma and is an ideal choice to lead the agency in the Trump Administration.”
U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt has already said he will support Pruitt’s nomination, but state lawmakers want U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill to do the same.
“The state of Missouri and her legislature should demand that the United States Senate confirms the nomination as soon as possible to ensure we rein in the out of control EPA while spurring on the vast opportunity that our American resources can provide the energy economy,” Fitzwater said.
He says that the past eight years have threatened Missourian’s livelihoods and way of life.
“Thousands of my constituents rely on energy and agriculture production to support their families,” Fitzwater said. “Pruitt’s expertise as a constitutional lawyer and in the federal regulatory system prepares him to implement President-elect Trump’s energy plan, which will protect clean air and clean water and unleash an energy revolution that will bring millions of new jobs and higher wages to this country.”
Other Republicans have joined the call on social media, including Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft.
“I agree! @ScottPruittOK understands challenges & life on the farm & isn’t beholden to D.C.” he tweeted.
I agree! @ScottPruittOK understands challenges & life on the farm & isn’t beholden to D.C. Hey, @clairecmc, #confirmpruitt! https://t.co/G0SNSv96Bb
— Jay Ashcroft (@JayAshcroftMO) January 17, 2017
“MO’s economy can’t afford 4 more years of hostility from Feds. That’s why we need @AGScottPruitt at EPA.” Sen. Bob Onder said in a tweet.
MO’s economy can’t afford 4 more years of hostility from Feds. That’s why we need @AGScottPruitt at EPA. #ConfirmPruitt, @clairecmc!
— Bob Onder (@BobOnderMO) January 17, 2017
“I’ve witnessed impact of EPA job killing red tape in rural MO. To restore balance we need @AGScottPruitt!” Rep. Scott Fitzpatrick tweeted, asking McCaskill to help confirm Pruitt.
I’ve witnessed impact of EPA job killing red tape in rural MO. To restore balance we need @AGScottPruitt! @clairecmc please #ConfirmPruitt!
— Scott Fitzpatrick (@FitzpatrickMO) January 17, 2017
Even the House Speaker has joined the cause, writing about the issue of federal overreach, something the EPA has been accused of several times before.
In his column published by the Southeast Missourian, Rep. Todd Richardson wrote about the EPA’s designation of what constitutes “navigable waters,” saying that their current language applies to smallest of backyard streams and drainage ditches.
“How much of Missouri does that cover? 99.7 percent,” Richardson writes. “That means more area for them to regulate and more government control over private property.”
He also criticized the “Clean Power Plan,” saying it forced increased energy costs.
“This is the kind of nonsense that Scott Pruitt will put a stop to once he’s confirmed to lead the EPA. No one wants to go back to the polluted rivers and air that we see in classic newspaper photos and news reports, and Scott Pruitt does not want that either,” he wrote. “But we also can’t give unelected bureaucrats in Washington, D.C. a blank check to regulate every farmer, family and small business in Middle America into extinction.”
“If you care about adding jobs to our economy, support Scott Pruitt’s confirmation as the Administrator of the EPA,” Richardson finished.
Opponents of the President-elect’s pick point to Pruitt’s multiple lawsuits against the EPA during his time as Attorney General. In fact, on his LinkedIn page, the nominee refers to himself as a “leading advocate against the EPA’s activist agenda.” But it’s exactly that kind of thinking that has led to support for the pick, citing a need to deregulate the EPA.
If both chambers adopt the identical resolutions, they would both then send a letter to the U.S. Senate calling for the confirmation of Pruitt.
Benjamin Peters was a reporter for The Missouri Times and Missouri Times Magazine and also produced the #MoLeg Podcast. He joined The Missouri Times in 2016 after working as a sports editor and TV news producer in mid-Missouri. Benjamin is a graduate of Missouri State University in Springfield.
