Al Franken: “I rise today in opposition to the nomination of Scott Pruitt to serve as the Administrator of the Environmental…”

“I rise today in opposition to the nomination of Scott Pruitt to serve as the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. The Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA, is tasked with protecting human health and the environment, including our precious air, land, and water. This is clearly one of the most critical missions in the Federal Government. Americans believe that a great country deserves safe drinking water, clean air, and to know that the products we use are safe. And Americans care about continuing this legacy for future generations, believing that we should leave the environment in good shape or better than we found it, and that is where the EPA comes in. Before the Agency was created in 1970, a hodgepodge of inconsistent State and city regulations proved to be inadequate for protecting the right of Americans to have a clean, safe environment. Before the EPA, in some cities in this country, the air was so polluted that during the day, drivers could barely see the car in front of them. Studies indicate that the air in the 1950s in Los Angeles, as measured by particulate matter and ozone pollution, was worse than it is in Beijing today. Our rivers, including the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland, caught fire. Schools were built on toxic chemical dumps. I know the thought of public health risks like these sound preposterous today, but this was all the case back before the EPA.…”