A Democratic lawmaker says his party will win the “messaging battle” if embattled Environmental Protection Administration chief Scott Pruitt keeps his job.
“As a Democrat trying to take back the House, I think having Pruitt there is an awesome symbol of corruption [that] helps Democrats,” Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) said in an interview with The Hill.
Lieu added, “if Donald Trump wants to keep him in the cabinet of corruption it helps Democratic messaging, absolutely.”
Pruitt testified before two congressional panels on Thursday, taking questions on a strong of controversies swirling around the EPA.
Republicans have also expressed reservations about Pruitt.
“I'm concerned about some of the allegations I've heard,” Rep. Steve Stivers (R-Ohio) told The Hill.
Rep. Bill Huizenga (R-Mich.) said Pruitt had been “damaged.”
“There's a lot of questions about judgment … the ultimate question is: are you serving the president and are you serving the purpose for which were going in and I think it's damaged at this point,” Huizenga said.
Several Republicans, including North Dakota GOP Senate hopeful Rep. Kevin Cramer, defended Pruitt atop the agency.
“(Pruitt) is doing what the president ran on, what the president won on, with the president has asked him to do in the rollback of regulations and then returning us to cooperative federalism. No, I don't think he should be fired,” Cramer said.
Click on the video above to hear the lawmakers in their own words.
