In his first interview as EPA administrator, Scott Pruitt made one thing very clear: the Clean Power Plan, the signature climate regulation of the Obama administration, is not long for this world. (emphasis added)

Pruitt told the Wall Street Journal on Friday that he expects to quickly withdraw both the Clean Power Plan and the Waters of the United States Rule, the Obama administration’s attempt at clarifying the EPA’s regulatory authority under the Clean Water Act.

“There’s a very simple reason why this needs to happen: Because the courts have seriously called into question the legality of those rules,” Pruitt said.

As Oklahoma Attorney General, Pruitt was party to lawsuits against the EPA for both the Clean Power Plan and the Waters of the United States Rule. Challenges to both rules are currently working their way through the court system, but Pruitt made clear that he does not intend to wait for the courts to decide before initiating the rule-making process necessary to withdraw both rules. Altogether, Pruitt sued the EPA fourteen times before becoming administrator.

Pruitt refused to say whether he […]