Americans Actually DO Care About the Environment, Revile EPA Administrator Pruitt
In my post Understanding EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt, I pointed out that, unlike his predecessor, Gina McCarthy, Pruitt is extremely secretive in his activities. I went on to use Occam’s Razor to explain this phenomenon: Pruitt’s job is to provide favorable conditions for corporate polluters, especially the oil companies, by aggressively despoiling the environment…..and thus we hate his guts. I went on to suggest that Pruitt is in the top five most hated people in the country.
Not surprisingly, frequent commenter MarcoPolo challenged me on that: Do you really believe “Scott Pruitt is one of the top five most hated people in the country?” I’ll bet a significant number of American don’t know who he is, and don’t care!
Interesting point. I tried unsuccessfully to find a poll listing the most hated Americans. Even if there were one, it doesn’t mean too much, since the sitting president, unless he’s a complete nebbish, is always both the most hated and most admired. Even as reviled as Trump is, I’ll bet he’s the most admired person in the country.
Here’s the list that I’m fairly sure you’d get of most hated:
- Trump
- Hillary
- Obama
- Pence
I may have gotten #2 and #3 reversed. In any case, from there it gets rocky. I think Pruitt is actually a solid possibility, which is why I wrote what I did.
From this article in the New York Times, written by Thomas Kean, (Republican) ex-governor of New Jersey: With Mr. Pruitt in charge, Americans are extremely dissatisfied with Mr. Trump’s handling of the environment — an approval rating of only 23 percent among independents, according to an August Fox News poll. Independents have long seen handling of the environment as a barometer of whether a candidate shares their values.
Most importantly, you’re incorrect in your belief that most Americans don’t care about the EPA, whether or not they could name the administrator. In a Pew Research Center survey conducted last year, about three-quarters of U.S. adults (74%) said “the country should do whatever it takes to protect the environment.”
Craig,
Using a vague survey question such as “Should the environment be protected” to justify claiming “Scott Pruitt is the most hated man in America” defies logic.
No doubt the readers of the New York Times, New Yorker and other elitist liberal publications will respond in a politically correct manner, but among the vast and varied populace of America striving to keep their heads above water economically, issues concerning the EPA, it’s administrator and even the environment, are not so important.
These folk have different priorities. This doesn’t mean they don’t want a better, cleaner environment, just their primary concerns are more immediate and economic circumstance take priority.
Craig,
How fair has the media been to Scott Pruitt as opposed to Gina McCarthy ?
The Washington Post was outraged and found Scott Pruitt’s trip to Italy to attend the G7 summit because it included a visit to the Vatican,which the Washington Post found ” absolutely scandalous”. The Washington Post ran a breathless article titled,” Travel costs for EPA chief’s security detail topped $30,000 on Italy trip.”
Curiously, the NYT, and Washington Post made no mention of Gina McCarthy making the same trip, including visiting the Vatican, at a cost of $58,000 ! Where was the outrage then ?
Nor did the media ever examine Gina McCarthy and her predecessors globetrotting expenses.
2016
$68,382 to travel to Ghana
$45,139 to travel to Peru
$74,737 to travel to Tokyo
$59,000 to travel to Italy
2015
$41,320 to travel to Paris
$90,367 to travel to Dubai
$67,702 to travel to Tokyo
$56,192 to travel to Italy
2014
$62,246 to travel to Vancouver (Seriously? It costs that much to go to Canada?)
$68,267 to travel to Vietnam
$55,384 to travel to China
.
Before McCarthy there was Lisa Jackson
2012: $64,963 to travel to Israel.
2011: $59,950 to travel to Rio De Janeiro.
2011: $51,435 to travel to Montreal.
2011: $155,763 to travel to China.
To me these all seem relatively modest travel expences for Senior US officials. Although Canada seems a bit excessive) What’s different is the attitude and outrage of the mainstream press.
I actually agree. I didn’t look at the numbers, as you did, but it struck me as a chickencrap thing to report on. And some of these costs are incurred to protect him from angry people, which, I have to admit, IS legitimate; I’m not the only one who hates his guts. I’m a man of peace, but that doesn’t mean everyone is. If I were he, I’d have a gaggle of bodyguards too.
This reporting seems especially dumb when one considers the truly heinous things he’s doing to the environment and all there is to say about that.