At a recent Los Angeles rally, Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) urged American citizens to confront and harass Trump administration officials wherever they might find them — and people may be taking her words to heart.
A mother holding a toddler in her arms confronted Scott Pruitt, the Environmental Protection Agency administrator, on Monday as he was dining out in a restaurant in Washington, D.C. — and asked him to resign “before your scandals push you out.” (She was also reading from notes in her hand.)
This latest episode follows on the heels of the harassment or pestering (or worse) of other Trump officials as they tried to enjoy some private time at restaurants with their families and others, including White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS) Kirstjen Nielsen.
Kristin Mink wrote on Facebook that she confronted Pruitt at Teaism in Washington, D.C. And in a video of the event, the young mother is seen telling Pruitt that her son loves animals, breathing clean air and drinking clean water.
“I would urge you to resign before your scandals push you out,” said Mink, a teacher at the Sidwell Friends School in D.C. — the school the Obama daughters attended — in the video.
Mink mentioned several issues surrounding the EPA head, including his reported room-rent deal.
Environmentalists and public health advocacy groups have criticized Pruitt for trying to roll back Obama-era regulations that address water and air quality and climate change. Recent reports have surfaced about Pruitt’s asking a top aide to run personal errands.
EPA head Scott Pruitt was 3 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 taxpayer money to fund a lavish lifestyle. He’s corrupt, he’s a liar, he’s a climate change denier, and as a public servant, he should not be able to go out in public without hearing from the citizens he’s hurting. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency U.S. EPA Administrator Scott PruittETA: You don’t have to wait til your next Pruitt sighting to take action! Click here to help Boot Pruitt! https://www.addup.org/campaigns/boot-pruitt
Posted by Kristin Mink on Monday, July 2, 2018
Facebook friends of Mink’s were more than happy to cheer her on: “I am so proud of you!” said one commenter. “You are a great role model for your son and the children who proudly call you their teacher. It takes guts and you got the message clear and to the point!”
Related: The 10 Things You Won’t Believe Maxine Waters Said About Donald Trump
Pruitt is seen listening respectfully to Mink’s remarks, and the video ends after Mink’s diatribe.
“Cowardly Pruitt had no response,” Mink wrote on Facebook, and she said he left the restaurant before she returned to her seat several tables away.
However, EPA spokesman Lincoln Ferguson said Pruitt thanked the woman for her comments.
“Administrator Pruitt always welcomes input from Americans, whether they agree or disagree with the decisions being made at EPA,” Ferguson said in a statement, according to USA Today. “This is evident by him listening to her comments and going on to thank her, which is not shown in the video. His leaving had nothing to do with the confrontation, he had simply finished his meal and needed to get back to EPA for a briefing.”
Deirdre Reilly is a senior editor with LifeZette. Follow her on Twitter.
(photo credit, article image image: Scott Pruitt, CC BY-SA 2.0, by Gage Skidmore)
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