6/1/2017

CLIMATE CHANGE/EPA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT/TRUMP PEOPLE/SCOTT PRUITT: “Environmental Protection Agency head Scott Pruitt on Thursday [6-1-17] would not say whether President Donald Trump still considers climate change a ‘hoax.’
When flatly asked by CNN’s Jake Tapper, ‘Does the President believe climate change is a hoax?’ the EPA administrator responded: ‘This is not about whether climate change is occurring or not.’
The interview immediately followed Trump’s announcement of his decision to withdraw the US from the Paris climate accord.
‘This is about making sure that America, as we negotiate CO2 reductions, that we do so with an *America First* approach,’ Pruitt said on ‘The Lead’ Thursday.
‘We are leading the world with respect to innovation and technology at reducing our CO2 footprint. This agreement was truly about putting America second or last. It was not about learning from what America is doing, it was about putting constraints on the economy as the president talked about.’ “

-Saba Hamedy, “After Trump’s Paris announcement, EPA chief ducks question on climate change,” CNN Politics, CNN.com, June 1, 2017 8:32am