Pruitt is unable to clear air

EMBATTLED Environmental Protection Agency head Scott Pruitt contradicted himself Thursday, admitting he signed off on massive raises for a pair of political appointees.

Pruitt admitted under oath that he did have some knowledge of five-figure raises for senior legal counsel Sarah Greenwalt and scheduling director Millian Hupp, both of whom worked for Pruitt when he was attorney general in Oklahoma.

“Those, those decisions, that decision was made by,” Pruitt stumbled as Rep. Paul Tonko (D-N.Y.) asked him whether he personally approved the raises.

“Yes, or no, did you authorize them?” Tonko asked.

“There was delegation given in my authority,” Pruitt finally responded, admitting for the first time that he approved the exorbitant bonuses.

In a Fox News interview on April 4, Pruitt insisted he didn’t approve the raises and didn’t know who did. He’d told President Trump the same thing, The Washington Post reported.

Tonko said Pruitt’s answers on Thursday suggest he has “no idea what is going on” at the agency.

The embattled EPA head — facing a growing wave of calls for his resignation amid allegations that he has abused his power and spent taxpayer funds on lavish travel and unnecessary security — did his best to lay blame for his troubles on others.

Pruitt offered clipped, lawyerly responses and evaded direct answers as Democrats peppered him with questions him about his ties to lobbyists, his spending, security and reported political retributions.

Pruitt only addressed the allegations against him in passing in his opening statement, acknowledging merely that “there’s been a learning process,” and adding, “Facts are facts, fiction is fiction.”

Pruitt first testified before the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and later appeared before the House Appropriations Committee.

On the defensive, the EPA chief said “half-truths” and “twisted” allegations were an effort to undermine the Trump administration’s anti-regulatory agenda.