Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said Friday that he has begun looking into a controversy surrounding Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt, according to a video shot Friday by activists.
“I don’t have a lot patience for that kind of stuff,” Gowdy said at a book signing event alongside Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., his co-author.
Gowdy did not indicate whether he plans to launch a formal investigation into matters pertaining to Pruitt after a string of negative stories, headlined by a $50-per-night living arrangement at a condo on Capitol Hill during the opening months of the Trump administration.
The South Carolina Republican told the activists that while he and the committee have seen documents that they have requested, they have not been formally given copies.
“Well, we’ve actually seen them. They just haven’t produced them. They let us come over and see them,” Gowdy said. “I’m not sure he’s going to make it that long. It gets worse every time there’s a report in the news.”
Pruitt has been under fire, but has publicly received the backing of the president, who said last week Pruitt was “TOTALLY under siege.”
“Do you believe that the Fake News Media is pushing hard on a story that I am going to replace A.G. Jeff Sessions with EPA Chief Scott Pruitt, who is doing a great job but is TOTALLY under siege?” Trump said in a tweet Friday. “Do people really believe this stuff? So much of the media is dishonest and corrupt!”
