The longer Scott Pruitt stays as Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, the more ethics problems government investigators and members of congress are finding.
It’s not just the situations that arose in Oklahoma when Pruitt was Attorney General and a state Senator from Tulsa, but this week at least two ethics challenges were reported.
One involved Pruitt’s use of a top aide to run personal errands for him, including help in searching for an apartment and an attempt to buy a used mattress from the Trump International Hotel. The allegation was revealed in congressional transcripts, according to the New York Times.
Then there is the matter that came to light on Tuesday about Pruitt asking for a personal meeting with the chairman and chief executive of Chick-fil-A so he could discuss the possibility of his wife buying a franchise. Reports indicated that Pruitt had his executive scheduler email Chick-fil-A CEO Dan Cathy to discuss a “potential business opportunity” and the request was made only three months after Pruitt became EPA Administrator.
As reported by the Washington Post, a call was arranged then canceled but Pruitt revealed to the company his wife Marilyn wa.s interested in a franchise.
“The subject of that phone call was an expression of interest in his wife becoming a Chick-fil-A franchisee,” stated a company representative in an email to the Post.
But Marilyn Pruitt never opened a restaurant.
It both circumstances are fuel for Democrats on a House oversight panel who have already accused Pruitt of “multiple abuses of authority” by using agency staff for personal assignments.
The use of government workers for personal assistance is prohibited by federal ethics standards. There is one provision that bans the use of government time to carry out personal matters. And another provision prohibits managers or bosses from asking their employees to do personal matters for them outside of the office.