{"id":63670,"date":"2018-04-20T11:35:46","date_gmt":"2018-04-20T11:35:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/?p=63670"},"modified":"2018-04-20T11:35:46","modified_gmt":"2018-04-20T11:35:46","slug":"epa-inspector-general-opens-new-probe-into-pruitts-travels","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/politics\/epa-inspector-general-opens-new-probe-into-pruitts-travels.html","title":{"rendered":"EPA inspector general opens new probe into Pruitt&#8217;s travels"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2 style=\"text-align: justify\"><strong><span style=\"font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 18pt;color: #000000\">EPA inspector general opens new probe into Pruitt&#8217;s travels<\/span><\/strong><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 14pt;color: #000000\">The Environmental Protection Agency\u2019s inspector general will investigate agency Administrator Scott Pruitt\u2019s use of his official security detail on recent personal trips, the latest in a string of congressional, White House and internal probes into his spending on security and travel.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 14pt;color: #000000\">The investigation comes at the request of Democratic Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, he announced on Thursday, a month after he asked Inspector General Arthur Elkins to look into Pruitt\u2019s \u201cunprecedented use\u201d of his taxpayer-funded security detail documented in six weeks of obtained schedules and travel logs.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 14pt;color: #000000\">\u201cWhile I consider matters of personal security to be extremely serious, personal security should never be used as a pretext to obtain special treatment,\u201d Whitehouse said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 14pt;color: #000000\">Destinations to which Pruitt was accompanied by his personal security detail included Disneyland, the Rose Bowl football tournament and college basketball games.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 14pt;color: #000000\">The senator also noted that Pruitt frequently requested per diem lodging expenses above the federal government\u2019s established daily rate.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 14pt;color: #000000\">Elkins told Whitehouse in a letter saying he will launch the probe that the new review will be separate from other ongoing audits of Pruitt\u2019s travel, which include frequent trips to his home state of Oklahoma and one to Morocco, where he promoted U.S. natural gas exports to the North African country<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 14pt;color: #000000\">\u201cWe have determined that the issues raised in your letter are within the authority of the OIG to review, and we will do so,\u201d Elkins said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 14pt;color: #000000\">On Wednesday, White House Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney said he would investigate Pruitt\u2019s decision to spend $43,000 to build a private, secure phone booth for his office.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 14pt;color: #000000\">On the same day, dozens of Democratic U.S. senators called on Pruitt to resign over the allegations of ethical lapses.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 14pt;color: #000000\">The EPA chief has also come under fire for renting a room in a Washington condo owned by the wife of an energy lobbyist.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 14pt;color: #000000\">(This version of the story removes incorrect reference to price of room rental in final paragraph)<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify\"><span style=\"font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;font-size: 8pt;color: #000000\">Source:-https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/article\/us-usa-epa-travel\/epa-inspector-general-opens-new-probe-into-pruitts-travels-idUSKBN1HQ2OK<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"fb-background-color\">\n\t\t\t  <div \n\t\t\t  \tclass = \"fb-comments\" \n\t\t\t  \tdata-href = \"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/politics\/epa-inspector-general-opens-new-probe-into-pruitts-travels.html\"\n\t\t\t  \tdata-numposts = \"10\"\n\t\t\t  \tdata-lazy = \"true\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-colorscheme = \"light\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-order-by = \"social\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-mobile=true>\n\t\t\t  <\/div><\/div>\n\t\t  <style>\n\t\t    .fb-background-color {\n\t\t\t\tbackground: #ffffff !important;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t.fb_iframe_widget_fluid_desktop iframe {\n\t\t\t    width: 630px !important;\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t  <\/style>\n\t\t  ","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>EPA inspector general opens new probe into Pruitt&#8217;s travels The Environmental Protection Agency\u2019s inspector general will investigate agency Administrator Scott Pruitt\u2019s use of his official security detail on recent personal trips, the latest in a string of congressional, White House and internal probes into his spending on security and travel. 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