Scott Pruitts office deluged with angry callers after he questions the science of global warming

[jpak]

Source: Washington Post

Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt’s phones have been ringing off the hook — literally — since he questioned the link between human activity and climate change.

The calls to Pruitt’s main line, 202-564-4700, reached such a high volume by Friday that agency officials created an impromptu call center, according to three agency employees. The officials asked for anonymity out of fear of retaliation.

By Saturday morning calls went straight to voice mail, which was full and did not accept messages. At least two calls received the message that the line was disconnected, but that appeared to be in error.

Before the number was disabled, interns were dispatched to answer some of the incoming calls, according to one employee. At times, calls to that number ended up going to voice mail.

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Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2017/03/10/epa-administrator-scott-pruitt-call-your-office/?utm_term=.5a105f7c0b58

[Achilleaze]

1. Americans are sick and tired of republican liars

who can blame them?

[DK504]

29. Will they do enough to get this traitors out of office in '18?

Hope with in the next few months they will truly realize what they have done.

[The Sand Reckoner]

2. In the end, what does he care?

All the phone calls in the world can't keep him from doing what he wants. Our last chance to do that was the election, but a lot of Democrats decided they would rather have this than vote for Clinton. Those people are still trying to convince us that she would have been worse than what we have now. Sad.

[OldHippieChick]

8. I sympathize w/ your opinion, and he probably

doesn't give a shit personally. Still, to have his phones ringing off the hook and personnel having to be moved around to handle his stupidity, he may decide to tone down his rhetoric at least. Eventually, if we keep it up, he may even listen to a scientist.

[yallerdawg]

11. Except his boss...

thinks climate change is a Chinese hoax.

Link to tweet

?lang=en

[OldHippieChick]

15. I understand that, but that is no reason to quit resisting

or give up. I don't think the Cheetohead wants to pay attention to any of these departments after he's put someone in to head it up. He wants to go to Fl and golf. We have to continue to protest to every department, every representative, every Senator. We must be the squeaky wheel.

[The Sand Reckoner]

16. It's all very well to make noise

but in this case, what do you expect the "grease" to be, and where is it going to come from?

In the end, no amount of calling, marching and protesting can make up for a lost election. As galling as it is in the short term to make less noise about the shit that's going on in Washington, time, money and energy are ultimately limited resources. In the long term, winning elections and taking back at least one house of Congress, and then the White House, are what really matter, and that's where the real focus has to be.

[OldHippieChick]

17. I would be delighted to know how you foresee us accomplishing

those goals if we are quiet and complacent in the present. Are you proposing we merely work on 2018 campaigns? You speak of limited resources and, while I agree that's true for most people, there are many people who actually have time on their hands and can be useful now as well as 2018.

[The Sand Reckoner]

20. You didn't answer my question

What do you expect the "grease" to be, and where is it going to come from?

Why would you invest limited resources if you have no idea whether you will get a return on that investment, or what it will be? That makes no sense.

[LiberalLovinLug]

23. I think she said "squeaky" wheel, which implies you don't need grease to make a lot of racket.

It doesn't cost much to vocally resist, either on the streets or emailing, calling. And with government, like protesting, the 'business' model is a bad guide. Running things like a business, where material profit is the only indicator of success, only works for business.

[The Sand Reckoner]

25. No

She meant that if you want to get grease, you have to be the squeaky wheel making noise.

[LiberalLovinLug]

26. I was just pointing out that you are the one that brought up the word "grease".

We shouldn't be worrying about where the grease will come from at this point. And I would submit, that not getting grease initially, will just make the wheels squeak louder. And they will keep getting louder until the issues are addressed. The grease may be the MSM, at least some of them. For example, the Dakota pipeline protesters. No protest, no coverage.

[OldHippieChick]

27. One invests the time one has and is willing to invest. That is not difficult to

understand I hope. As for the return on investment, perhaps it takes a little time on this planet and I would venture I have more time invested than do you. I know that the return may take some time - perhaps years, and I am willing to invest long term.

The grease may not be what we expect, but it will be attention and that, right now, is all we need to take them off their game - and believe me, to them it is a game. No, I don't like playing a game, but I do think I'm smarter at it than they and I intend to win.

[The Sand Reckoner]

32. You still haven't answered the question

Invest in what? What is the return on the investment of time and effort to flood Pruitt's office with calls? If you're saying that it may take years or decades to see anything useful come of that, I will tell you flat out that it's a waste. The fact that some people have time to engage in that doesn't mean that time couldn't be better spent, to actually achieve goals that actually mean something.

As far as "attention", people could get that by running around naked in front of the White House. That would surely take the Republicans off of "their game". So what? I hear a bunch of people in Chicago wanted to have a protest where they all mooned Trump Tower. Very funny, very clever, and I'm sure it made them feel all activist, but what earthly good would it do as far as regaining actual political control? Waste of time and effort.

[OldHippieChick]

33. You seem very agitated that I am not giving you

the response you want. If I wish to invest my time in phoning my representative, Senator or member of the judicial branch, I may not see the return on investment immediately. If I choose to spend my time writing a letter to the editor or contributing to a blog or - god forbid - a discussion group - I will spend my time as I wish and again, the return may not be as you wish (quid pro quo) but it may be enough to give me incentive to continue.

I hope this somehow makes sense to you. If you wish to do nothing, that is your choice.

[N77VG]

24. He's a fundie. Science doesn't comport with his religious delusions.

Science asks questions that may never be answered, religion preaches answers that may never be questioned.

[Equinox Moon]

3. Protecting the environment is very popular.

[mountain grammy]

4. Enough of their bullshit..

[Augiedog]

5. Gee, imagine that, people don't want have to tread water in their living room.

[not fooled]

7. And all so that

a small number of plutocratic oligarchs can gorge themselves on obscene profits. Other than brainwashed Faux viewers, the public knows that climate change is real and will hurt the populace more than the wealthy who can buy their way out of short-term consequences (but not, of course, the planetwide ruin that eventually will ensue).

The message is also getting out to the American public that there are more jobs for Americans in cleaner, renewable energy than in the fossil fuel industry, and that by propping up these dinosaurs we are condemning ourselves to an endless cycle of foreign wars and terrorism.

The fossil fuel barons extract wealth from the planet into ultimately a few hands. They can maintain more centralized control over this form of energy and have the infrastructure in place to allow profits to flow to them. Eventually this will end. Unfortunately, because of the outcome of the last election/installation, we are going backwards for now.

[bucolic_frolic]

6. RESIST

Don't let your resolve fade.

[mpcamb]

22. Resist this industry-paid professional liar!

[LuckyLib]

9. Thanks for posting this. More of us should flood the number in the

weeks to come. Resistance takes many forms. In addition to attending every march possible (numbers and visibility matter), we need to phone and email to those loathsome creatures in congress.

[hibbing]

10. I wonder how much each caller was getting paid j/k

[SHRED]

12. He works for oil corporations not us

[neeksgeek]

13. Good!

[Tanuki]

14. If your senators voted for him, be sure that they hear from you as well.

My senators (Alexander and Corker) heard plenty from me before the confirmations and obviously didn't listen, but I am not done. They voted to confirm Trump's corrupt and clueless cabinet, and they need to hear how angry we are with the results.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

18. March for Science is on Earth Day, April 22. I will be marching.

https://www.marchforscience.com

Find marches near you.

[elmac]

19. Its sad that the most progressive state in the union

CA, is suffering the most from the fascists anti GW nuts.

[Sunlei]

21. Gov. Phones have to be OPEN 24/7 for Americans to contact THEIR government.

Republicans YOU work for us Americans.

[Solly Mack]

28. They hide from their constituents, they sneak away from town halls

they turn their phones off and they hide from the press....because they don't give a flying fuck what the people think or want.

They will do as they please and the rest of us can kiss their ass.

They being both congressional GOP and Trump administration.

[Kablooie]

30. Problem is he doesn't have to listen to any of them.

These people are not servants of the public anymore.
They are tentacles of the new regime that is controlled by Bannon and probably Putin.

I'm sure all the new government's top administrators all consider themselves totally independent from the public.

[Skittles]

31. BRING ON THE SCIENCE MARCH

ENOUGH OF THIS BACKWARDS BULLSHIT

[Sunlei]

34. calls are about the only 'complains' our government keep a record of. supposed to keep emails,

Supposed to keep emails and voicemails, but in my experience with emails to DOI they delete thousands when they can get away with it.