#Scott Pruitt denied bid to use sirens for personal nonemergency use

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   *** Pruitt is still facing more than a dozen federal probes from his tenure as EPA administrator, and EPA’s watchdog and congressional investigators are promising to continue looking into his long list of ethical woes and lavish spending allegations. Those investigations have already prompted Pruitt to turn to an outside attorney for advice and set up a legal defense fund before his resignation.  EPA’s inspector general expects to finish and release as many as four separate reports on Pruitt this summer, according to a spokesman. ***

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 *** The exodus comes amid steep criticism of Pruitt, including calls for his ouster by at least 170 Democratic and four Republican lawmakers. There are at least 10 federal investigations into Pruitt, including probes of his rental of a Capitol Hill bedroom from a lobbyist for $50 a night under unusually generous terms, frequent taxpayer-funded travel to his home state of Oklahoma, questionable spending decisions at the EPA, and raises granted to two top aides over White House objections.  ***

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   *** As the head of the EPA, Pruitt was Trump’s point man for the administration’s plan to roll back environmental regulations, many of which were put in place by the Obama administration.    In the year he has served as the T-rump administration's top environmental official, Pruitt moved to quash or replace numerous environmental regulations opposed by industry lobbyists while boosting the continued burning of fossil fuels, which scientists have concluded is the primary cause of climate change.    However, his tenure was quickly overshadowed by a number of controversies, which grew to include frequent first-class travel and expensive trips at taxpayer expense, reports of big pay raises for top aides, reports that he sidelined staff who questioned him, and his use of EPA aides for personal tasks. ***

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   *** A CNN review which compared Pruitt's public calendar with internal EPA schedules and emails shows more than two dozen meetings, events or calls were omitted from his public calendar.  A former deputy chief of staff said that some interactions were intentionally removed from Pruitt's calendar after they occurred. ...    If the allegations are true, the practice of keeping secret calendars and altering or deleting records of meetings could violate federal law as either "falsifying records" or hiding public records, according to legal experts interviewed by CNN. ***

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  *** The interviews cond ucted by staffers for the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee late last week shed new light on the EPA administrator’s willingness to leverage his position for his personal benefit and to ignore warnings even from allies about potential ethical issues, according to three individuals familiar with the sessions, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the ongoing investigation. ...    The new accounts by Pruitt’s handpicked staff come as EPA’s chief ethics officer, Kevin Minoli, has urged the agency’s Office of Inspector General to broaden its review of Pruitt’s conduct. ***

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  *** The interviews cond ucted by staffers for the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee late last week shed new light on the EPA administrator’s willingness to leverage his position for his personal benefit and to ignore warnings even from allies about potential ethical issues, according to three individuals familiar with the sessions, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the ongoing investigation. ...    The new accounts by Pruitt’s handpicked staff come as EPA’s chief ethics officer, Kevin Minoli, has urged the agency’s Office of Inspector General to broaden its review of Pruitt’s conduct. ***

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   *** Mr. Pruitt is facing 13 federal inquiries into his spending and management practices as E.P.A. administrator, including the condo arrangement and the use of staff members for personal errands, as well as his first-class travel expenses and the installation of a $43,000 soundproof phone booth in his office.   The E.P.A. on Saturday declined to comment on the allegations related to Mr. Pruitt. In the past, the agency has said that Mr. Pruitt paid rent on the condominium, so there was nothing inappropriate about the arrangement, and that the former aide, Millan Hupp, is a friend of Mr. Pruitt’s family and provided personal help on her own time.    Matters like the ones Mr. Minoli raised with investigators have the potential to represent a violation of federal ethics rules because, for example, staff members are not allowed to use agency resources for personal benefit. ***

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  *** It’s not unprecedented for high-ranking government officials to shun email, but Pruitt has in the past used his private email for official business when he served as Oklahoma’s attorney general.    EPA provided the email in response to a Freedom of Information Act request from the Sierra Club, which has been seeking Pruitt’s external communications for more than a year. In September, the group filed a lawsuit to compel EPA to respond. ***

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  *** Pruitt has faced backlash in recent months for his actions regarding his spending habits using taxpayer dollars.    Reports and accusations against Pruitt include that rented a condo from a lobbyist for just $50 for each night he spent there, spent $43,000 on a soundproof booth for his office, spent $3.5 million on a security detail and had aides or security staff perform personal tasks, like assisting his wife find a job and trying to find a used mattress from the T-rump International Hotel. ***

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 *** Recently released emails show Pruitt had aides reach out to Chick-fil-A about a "business opportunity" for his wife, inquire about getting a used mattress for him from the Trump International Hotel and arrange for him to attend batting practice at a Washington Nationals baseball game, among other perks. It also has been disclosed that he got a sweetheart deal renting a Washington condo co-owned by the wife of a lobbyist who had business with the agency.    Federal ethics codes prohibit having staffers conduct personal errands and bar officials from using their position for private gain. ***

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  *** The senators asked the IG to review whether Pruitt was complying with federal law and EPA policy when using multiple email accounts and whether all accounts are searched when responding to Freedom of Information Act requests. ...    A House committee and the Government Accountability Office also are conducting investigations and audits related to Pruitt's actions as EPA chief. ***

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   *** Over the past few months, as Mr. Pruitt’s problems have mounted — he is now the subject of at least 11 federal investigations and some Republicans have called for his resignation — Mr. T-rump has continued to suppscottort his E.P.A. chief on Twitter and in public and private remarks.  But that is likely to chan.P.A.ge in the coming weeks, the two officials said. ***

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  *** After taking office last year, Pruitt drew up a list of at least a dozen countries he hoped to visit and urged aides to help him find official reasons to travel, according to four people familiar with the matter, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal agency deliberations. Pruitt then enlisted well-connected friends and political allies to help make the trips happen. ***

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  *** Ethics concerns about Pruitt cropped up almost as soon as he was sworn in last year, but new allegations, ranging from renting a cheap condo from the wife of a lobbyist who represented clients at the EPA to sidelining employees who objected to his expensive travel, have piled up in the past three months. Now environmental groups, Democrats, and a few Republicans are calling for his immediate resignation. ***

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 *** Even in a cabinet filled with ugly controversies and ethical messes, Pruitt stands out as arguably the most scandal plagued of the bunch.  What's less appreciated is Pruitt's lengthy pattern of dubious behavior. The New York Times  reported over the weekend, for example, on Pruitt's record as a state senator 15 years ago, and how familiar his conduct seems. ***

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  *** Sources tell CBS News that Pruitt wanted to use his vehicle's lights and sirens to get to his official appointment, but the lead agent in charge of his security detail advised him that sirens were to be used only in emergencies. Less than two weeks later that agent was removed from Pruitt's detail, reassigned to a new job within the EPA. ...    Reports on his expensive travel arrangements began a torrent of negative headlines over the past several months that peaked over the last week with stories examining his housing arrangements and very generous raises for two of his staffers. ***