Reuters
Former EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt received $50,000 from a Wisconsin billionaire and major Republican donor for a legal defense fund created to help battle federal investigations into his questionable business conduct, The Washington Post reports. Pruitt, who resigned this summer in the wake of ethics inquiries, received the contribution from businesswoman Diane Hendricks, according to the report. Hendricks is said to have given the money to the “Scott Pruitt Legal Expenses Trust” sometime this year, according to a financial-disclosure form released Thursday and cited by the Post. The document, which Pruitt was required to file upon leaving the agency, made clear that he never sought ethics advice prior to accepting the donation. “EPA ethics officials did not know of this contribution—believed to be in cash—until they received the termination report,” an agency comment noted. About a dozen investigations into his first-class travels, a condo rental from a lobbyist, and claims that he used aides to handle personal errands have cost him between $115,000 and $300,000 in legal fees, according to the report.