Panel sends AG Pruitt’s nomination to full Senate

Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt’s nomination to head the Environmental Protection Agency was sent to the full Senate on Thursday morning by Republican members of the Environment and Public Works Committee, who in the absence of their boycotting Democratic colleagues suspended rules requiring members of both parties for a quorum.

The 11 GOP members of the committee, including Oklahoma’s Sen. Jim Inhofe, voted to advance Pruitt’s nomination while the 10 Democratic seats remained empty. Only Chairman John Barrasso spoke during Thursday’s meeting.

A day earlier, Barrasso and his fellow Republicans chided Democrats for blocking the Pruitt vote by staying away from a scheduled meeting. The Democrats say Pruitt has not been forthcoming in his answers to questions about his association with industries he will regulate as head of the EPA.

Barrasso said the Democratic holdout is “political theater.”

“It’s disappointing they have chosen that route,” he said Thursday. “But we will not allow them to obstruct. It’s time to set up a working government, including a working Environmental Protection Agency.”

Democrats point out that Republicans boycotted a similar vote on Obama administration nominee Gina McCarthy in 2013, but Republicans say this is different because it is the start of a new administration.

Republican senators relented in 2013 after McCarthy and the Democrats agreed to certain conditions for her appointment. Barrasso indicated Thursday he had tried to negotiate with Democratic committee members but could find no solution.

Pruitt’s nomination now goes to a vote of the full Senate, where he is expected to narrowly win confirmation with the support of a few Democrats.

Once Pruitt is confirmed, Gov. Mary Fallin will chose a replacement to complete his term as attorney general. That term ends in 2018.