The Manila Times

WOMAN BERATES US EPA CHIEF AT RESTAURANT

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A woman confronted EPA chief Scott Pruitt at a Washington restaurant and called on him to resign — the latest time an official from President Donald Trump’s administra­tion has come under fire while dining out. Kristin Mink posted a video of the encounter with the Environmen­tal Protection Agency administra­tor on her Facebook page on Monday, writing that he “was three tables away as I ate lunch with my child. I had to say something.” “This man is directly and significan­tly harming my child’s— and every child’s— health and future with decisions to roll back environmen­tal regulation­s for the benefit of big corporatio­ns, while he uses taxpayers’ money to fund a lavish lifestyle,” wrote Mink, whose Facebook page identifies her as a high school teacher. In the video— which has been viewed more than 100,000 times— she walks up to a seated Pruitt and tells him: “I just wanted to urge you to resign because of what you’re doing to the environmen­t and our country.” “We deserve to have somebody at the EPA who actually does protect our environmen­t, somebody who believes in climate change and takes it seriously for the benefit of all of us, including our children,” she said, holding her toddler as she spoke. Pruitt, who has come under fire for allegedly using his position to seek employment for his wife and receiving a discount on a condo rental linked to a lobbying firm, did not respond to Mink during the video, and text at the end said that he “fled the restaurant before I got back to my seat.” The EPA chief was not the first Trump administra­tion official to face a public backlash at a restaurant. White House spokeswoma­n Sarah Sanders was asked to leave a restaurant in Virginia, while senior White House aide Stephen Miller was branded a “fascist” by an angry patron during a visit to a downtown Mexican eatery. And Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen made a quick exit when protesters marched into another Mexican restaurant chanting “Shame!” She also confronted angry activists at her home in the suburb of Alexandria.

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