Outrage as Senate Democrats Join GOP to Approve Zeldin as EPA Chief
Environmental and public health proponents expressed their dismay on Wednesday when three Democratic Senators sided with the GOP to endorse President Donald Trump’s nomination of former New York Congressman Lee Zeldin as the head of the Environmental Protection Agency.
Since Trump announced his choice in November, critics have consistently objected, claiming Zeldin would favor the interests of wealthy industrialists over the wellbeing of the American populace and the environment. These concerns were reignited when Democratic Senators John Fetterman (Pa.), Ruben Gallego (Ariz.), and Mark Kelly (Ariz.) voted in favor of his confirmation as the EPA administrator.
Following the confirmation, the youth-driven Sunrise Movement labeled Zeldin “a catastrophe for our planet and a victory for Big Oil.”
Margie Alt, the director of the Climate Action Campaign, made a statement describing Lee Zeldin’s confirmation as “a devastating setback for American health, the climate, and the economy. With Zeldin at the helm, the Environmental Protection Agency will shift its focus from protecting American communities to safeguarding polluters.”
Alt highlighted Zeldin’s track record and prior statements, indicating that “the perilous agenda he will pilot includes rolling back crucial pollution controls, abandoning commitments to clean energy, and entrenching the nation’s dependence on costly and polluting fossil fuels, which will inflate prices at the pump.”
“Americans did not vote for more polluted air, increased asthma incidents, or higher health care costs, yet that is precisely the outcome we can expect from Zeldin’s EPA. The most vulnerable groups, particularly children and the elderly, will suffer most from these policies, while a handful of fossil fuel magnates continue to accumulate wealth,” she added. “Zeldin’s confirmation represents a profound letdown for all Americans.”
Marc Yaggi, CEO of Waterkeeper Alliance, declared, “This is a critical juncture for clean water, and Americans deserve leadership that prioritizes their needs over the whims of corporate polluters.”
Although Yaggi acknowledged Zeldin’s previous opposition to offshore oil drilling and his support for responsible policies on “forever chemicals,” he expressed serious concerns about Zeldin’s commitment to leading the EPA effectively, given his history of voting against essential infrastructure and environmental funding and opposing protections for clean water and air.
The Moms Clean Air Force proposed renaming the EPA under Zeldin and Trump’s leadership to the “Extreme Pollution Agency.”
In the brief period since his return to the White House just ten days earlier, Trump has initiated several executive measures that threaten the environment.
Melinda Pierce, the Sierra Club’s legislative director, stated, “The EPA’s core mission is to safeguard human health and the environment.” She continued, “Faced with Trump’s hazardous executive orders and unlawful attempts to halt all federal funding, the new EPA administrator must decide whether to fulfill the responsibilities of his role or succumb to Trump’s lethal agenda supported by fossil fuel interests and his trail of unkept promises.”
“The American public demands clean air and water,” she emphasized. “They desire a safe environment for their families today and for future generations. They expect their government to shield them from the escalating threats of the climate crisis we witness increasingly each day. This responsibility now falls to Lee Zeldin, and we will exert all our efforts to ensure he remains answerable to the American people.”
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