A growing number of Republicans are calling on Donald Trump to take action against his Environmental Protection Agency head Scott Pruitt, whose record as one of the president’s most aggressive deregulators threatens to be overwhelmed by allegations over his conduct. Questions about Mr Pruitt have been stirred by revelations he rented a Washington bedroom from a lobbyist couple and used government funds to fly first class, as well as by reports that his team unsuccessfully tried to obtain a soundproof booth in his office that would prevent eavesdropping, a bulletproof desk and bulletproof SUV.
While some White House officials have cast doubt over Mr. Pruitt’s future, Mr. Trump defended the EPA chief over the weekend, dismissing the allegations of improper conduct and defending Mr. Pruitt’s record. “Scott is doing a great job!” he tweeted. Several Republicans in Congress said the steady drip of revelations surrounding Mr. Pruitt’s behavior was damaging the credibility of the administration. “I think Scott Pruitt is the wrong person to head the EPA,” Susan Collins, a Republican senator from Maine, told CNN’s State of the Union on Sunday.