EPA's Pruitt: Paris Agreement was a Bad Business Deal for America
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator Scott Pruitt on Wednesday said President Trump will soon make a decision on whether to pull out of the global Paris Climate Agreement signed in 2015.
In an interview on the FOX Business Network’s Varney & Co., the EPA administrator called the Paris Agreement “a bad deal for this country.”
“What Paris represents is an American second strategy. We already are at pre-1994 levels with respect to our CO2 footprint and when America went to Paris, Russia, China, India, all contributed zero to the climate action fund. And as far as India and China are concerned, they didn’t have to take any steps to address CO2 until year 2030. That’s a bad business deal for this country,” he said.
Pruitt said the United States has been leading the world at reducing our CO2 footprint through innovation and technology without any government mandate.
“When you look at what’s happened, you have technology and innovation, invested by the private sector, reducing our CO2 footprint. So, we need to tell our story. We don’t need to be apologetic about our position and we need to exit Paris,” he said.
The EPA administrator weighed in on billionaire Sir Richard Branson calling out Trump on his coal plan.
“I can’t think of anything more stupid than to talk about bringing coal back,” Branson said during an interview with Washington Post Live.
Pruitt called Branson’s comments “dead wrong” and said the United States is blessed with its resources.
“It’s a smart strategy for this country to invest in technology and innovation. Burn coal, burn natural gas, use renewables, make sure we advance nuclear, but it truly needs to be a part of the field diversity with the utilities across the country," he said.