CONGRESS/EPA/ETHICS/SCOTT PRUITT/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Some of the most reliable conservatives in Congress are starting to speak out against Scott Pruitt, the chief of the Environmental Protection Agency who is now facing a barrage of ethics and spending questions. Previously, conservative Republicans had shown a reluctance to question the actions of top Trump administration officials. Their new outspokenness against a prominent architect of President Trump’s regulatory rollback represents a major break from the past…Mr. Pruitt is expected to face a grilling next week when he is scheduled to testify before the House Energy and Commerce subcommittee on the environment. Representative Greg Walden of Oregon, chairman of the House Energy panel, said that Mr. Pruitt would have to answer the ‘many questions’ that Mr. Walden and other Representatives have about his performance. It’s a far cry from a year ago, when the Senate confirmed Mr. Pruitt as head of the E.P.A. and Republicans rhapsodized about the man who had built a career by suing the agency he would now lead.”
–Coral Davenport, “G.O.P. Support Shows Cracks as Scott Pruitt’s Ethics Inquiries Widen,” The New York Times online, April 20, 2018