Pruitt started raising money for legal defense fund well before he quit EPA

Former EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt must have had strong suspicions about his chances of staying in office months before he left under fire.

POLITICO reported this w eek that it obtained documents showing Pruitt, the former Oklahoma Attorney General, began raising money for his legal defense fund well ahead of his departure from the Trump administration.

Here’s how POLITICO’s Morning Energy Report explained the story:

 

PRUITT DEFENSE FUND BEGAN LONG BEFORE EXIT: The defense fund benefiting Andrew Wheeler’s former boss Scott Pruitt began raising money more than two months ahead of his exit from the Trump administration, according to disclosure reports obtained by POLITICO.

Wisconsin billionaire Diane Hendricks’ previously reported donation of $50,000 to the Scott Pruitt Legal Expenses Trust occurred on April 24, Pro’s Alex Guillén reports via a disclosure to the IRS. That donation came weeks after stories emerged about Pruitt’s $50-per-night condo rental, but well before his resignation on July 5.

Hendricks is also the only disclosed contributor to the legal defense fund, but Pruitt’s legal bills had already exceeded what she gave by the time he resigned. He rung up between $115,000 and $300,000 in outstanding bills by then, Alex reports.