DEMS/EPA/SENATE/TRUMP PEOPLE: “The Senate confirmed Andrew Wheeler as EPA’s fifteenth administrator Thursday [2-28-19], cementing the authority of one of President Donald Trump’s most effective and prolific de-regulators. He was confirmed by a vote of 52-47. Sen. Susan Collins (R-Me.) was the only Republican to vote against him; no Democrats voted for him. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) did not vote. Wheeler, a former lobbyist, was thrust into EPA’s top spot by the July resignation of Scott Pruitt, who was forced out of the agency by ethics scandals ranging from major travel and security expenses and his efforts to find employment for his wife to the use of staff resources to search for housing, a used mattress and ritzy lotion. In the eight months since he took over EPA, Wheeler — whose previous clients include coal company Murray Energy, as well as a uranium company and cheese giant Sargento — has efficiently carried out the president’s de-regulatory agenda while avoiding the same constant stream of scandals that plagued Pruitt.”
-Alex Guillen, “Senate confirms Wheeler as Trump’s permanent EPA chief,” Politico, February 28, 2019 1:50 pm