Trump taps former Rep. Lee Zeldin to lead the Environmental Protection Agency
NBCNov 10
Trump Picks Lee Zeldin to Lead the EPA
Above: Lee Zeldin speaks on stage on the third day of the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum on July 17, 2024 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Image copyright: Leon Neal/Staff/Getty Images News via Getty Images
The Facts
In what was his second cabinet appointment for his upcoming administration, US Pres.-elect Donald Trump has selected former New York Representative Lee Zeldin, 44, to lead the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Zeldin, who served four terms in Congress representing Long Island, doesn't support the Paris climate agreement and has a lifetime score of 14% from the League of Conservation Voters. He also questioned the severity of global warming in 2014.
The Spin
Republican narrative
Despite the smear campaigns from the other side, Lee Zeldin cares deeply about the environment, particularly regarding farmland and the threat it faces from China. Zeldin also won't be starting from scratch, as the previous Trump administration achieved tremendous results, from removing lead and copper from the water system to the largest carbon reduction of any country in 2019. Zeldin's EPA will focus on protecting the environment without crushing the economy.
Democratic narrative
There is no need to lie about Zeldin's threat to the environment when he makes comments about "energy dominance." As the US is already burning record amounts of fossil fuels, his anti-regulation mindset will put the country, and thus the world, on an exponentially regressive track away from saving the planet. You can't promise to produce clean water and air while simultaneously drilling unlimited oil and gas and igniting extreme droughts.