"The last time President Donald Trump sat down with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer, the president walked out in a huff and dismissed their government shutdown talks as a “total waste of time.”"
Do we need a bill to criminalize attacks against those who report the news? Some Dems in Congress think so. And the Interior Department is at the center of a conflicts over freedom of information involving lobbying contacts with the newly confirmed secretary. The latest WatchDog has those developments, plus more.
"Climate change programs in federal land management agencies are quietly carrying on, even amid Trump administration hostility to such action."
"The Interior Department’s top internal watchdog, who oversaw the multiple investigations that contributed to the resignation of former Secretary Ryan Zinke, will retire from the agency next month, even as her office opens an inquiry into newly confirmed Secretary David Bernhardt."
The Toxics Release Inventory database, refreshed annually, has long been the foundation of many a good environmental news story. The latest release is now out, and this week’s TipSheet reminds journalists why the searchable online TRI can be such a valuable reporting tool in tracking toxic dangers.
"Former EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt and high-ranking aides held several previously unreported meetings with a Missouri-based electric utility company that EPA claimed in 2011 had been violating the Clean Air Act since the Clinton administration, agency documents show."
''The U.S. Interior Department’s inspector general office has opened a probe into recently-confirmed Secretary David Bernhardt on several allegations, including conflict of interest, it said in a letter to lawmakers on Monday."
"Just a few weeks shy of completing his first year in office, President Trump showcased his administration's focus on cutting 'red tape' with a striking visual display. Flanked by Cabinet officials and stacks of paper, the president held an oversized pair of golden scissors and ceremoniously cut through a red ribbon."
"The House Energy and Commerce Committee launched an investigation Thursday into whether the Environmental Protection Agency’s air policy chief and his deputy have improperly aided their former industry clients since joining the administration."
"The Senate on Thursday voted to confirm David Bernhardt, a former lobbyist for the oil and agribusiness industries, as secretary of the interior. The confirmation of Mr. Bernhardt to his new post coincided with calls from more than a dozen Democrats and government watchdogs for formal investigations into his past conduct."
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