President Trump early Thursday afternoon told reporters he still is confident in his Environmental Protection Agency chief Scott Pruitt, despite daily revelations of scandal and corruption swirling around the former Oklahoma Attorney General.
MSNBC reported Trump said “I do” when asked by pool reporters if he still supports Pruitt.
Pruitt, against White House instruction, gave an exclusive interview to Fox News on Wednesday. The White House reportedly was furious, not only that the EPA head ignored the president’s request, but – more importantly to this White House – that he performed so poorly before the cameras.
Pruitt was unable to answer basic questions about the latest scandal surrounding him, raises he reportedly authorized to two top staffers described as “friends” from Oklahoma. Those raises totaled about $85,000.
Fox News’ Ed Henry was praised by many for asking hard-hitting questions of Pruitt and not letting him wiggle out of answers. Regardless, comparisons of Pruitt’s remarks to a report in The Atlantic seem to show he was lying on national TV.
And even if the president is still defending Pruitt, the White House is less than supportive.
“I can’t speak to the future of Scott Pruitt,” one top spokesperson told reporters.
Watch: