Bernie Sanders: Pruitt's replacement is just as bad on the environment
By Annie Geng, CNN
Updated 6:19 PM ET, Thu July 5, 2018
Excerpts:
Washington (CNN)Sen. Bernie Sanders on Thursday denounced Andrew Wheeler, who is slated to replace the recently resigned Scott Pruitt as acting administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. Speaking to Jim Sciutto on "The Lead with Jake Tapper," the independent Vermont senator said he is "vigorously opposed" to Wheeler as Pruitt's replacement.
Asked by Sciutto how Democrats would block Wheeler should he go through the confirmation process, Sanders said they will need to "get a handful of Republican senators ... and get them on board to demand that Trump appoint an EPA administrator who represents the American people and not just the fossil fuel industry."
"Not every Republican agrees ... that climate change is a hoax," he said. "There are many Republicans who understand that it is real, that it is an enormous issue."
But in the era of Trump, the environment is just one of many pressing issues -- along with Trump's " (throwing of) 32 million people off of health insurance," "racism," "policies of separating tiny children from their mothers" and "trying to destroy long-term alliances that we have with allies all over the world" -- for Sanders.
"This is an issue of enormous consequence," the senator said. "Except when you're dealing with Trump, you're dealing with many issues of enormous consequences."
Interview Audio: https://www.cnn.com/videos/tv/2018/07/05/lead-sanders-pruitt-resignation-live.cnn
https://www.cnn.com/2018/07/05/politics/sanders-republican-wheeler-cnntv/index.html