Report: Scott Pruitt Had EPA Aides Push for WH Internship for His Daughter

EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt, the Donald Trump favorite who is already the subject of multiple ethics investigations, ordered his agency staff to help his daughter get an internship at the White House and leveraged his status to get the former speaker of the Virginia House of Delegates to write a letter to the University of Virginia School of Law in support of his daughter’s admission there, The New York Times reports. Aides told the Times that Pruitt “told them that he expected a certain standard of living akin to wealthier Trump Cabinet members. The aides felt as if Mr. Pruitt—who is paid about $180,000 a year—saw them as foot soldiers in achieving that lifestyle.” One told the Times he had a “clear sense of entitlement.” The report also states that Pruitt got Rose Bowl tickets at “face value” with the help of energy-industry executives days before the event—a time when tickets were going for seven times that amount on secondary markets. Pruitt’s spokesperson denied any wrongdoing. His daughter served as a White House intern during the summer of 2017.