| Friend, The Los Angeles wildfires are a devastating reminder of how Californians are on the frontlines of the climate crisis. Under a second Trump administration, it will be imperative to fight for real leadership of the Environmental Protection Agency, who will lead on solutions that will keep our communities safer. Unfortunately, Trump’s recently announced nominee for leading the agency -- former New York Representative Lee Zeldin -- is possibly one of the worst people for the job.(1) A climate change denier who has voted to cut the EPA budget by $1.9 billion, Zeldin has no business leading an agency of such critical importance as we see the impacts of irreversible climate damage.
An attorney and former army lieutenant, Zeldin has absolutely no qualifications for this post.(2) While in Congress, he racked up an abysmal voting record on environmental policy, earning a 14% lifetime score on the League of Conservation Voters scorecard.(3) When talked about his plans for the agency, Zeldin committed to widespread deregulation. That’s on top of the 125 environmental protections Trump already gutted during his first term. Zeldin has made clear his plan to prioritize the need of the fossil fuel industry over environmental protections.(4) Despite his statements that pay lip service to “protecting clean air and water,” Zeldin has offered no substantive proposals for doing so.(5) Instead, he’s spoken at length about “business-friendly” policies celebrated by Big Oil and other major polluters. Thank you for being with us. –Irene, along with Annie, Angela, Isidra, Cecilia, Jen, and Lindsay (the Courage team)
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