Trump Picks Ex-congressman Zeldin to Run Environmental Protection Agency

by Timothy Gardner and David Shepardson (Reuters) Zeldin voted against Biden's climate change law; Opposed NY goal to ban gasoline-powered cars by 2035; In Congress, Zeldin backed environmental bills 14% of the time -- U.S. President-elect Donald Trump said on Monday he will appoint Republican former Congressman Lee Zeldin, who often voted against legislation on green issues including a measure to stop oil companies from price gouging, to head the Environmental Protection Agency.

Trump, a Republican, will likely look to reverse many rules administered by the EPA on the burning of fossil fuels including one curbing carbon emissions from power plants and another slashing such emissions from vehicles.

Trump has said he plans to begin rescinding EPA and Transportation Department vehicle pollution rules on his first day in office and is considering paring back or eliminating EV tax breaks and other incentives.

President Joe Biden, a Democrat, reinstated California's authority. Trump will also decide how to spend billions of dollars in EV charging grants.

As a candidate for New York governor in the 2022 election, Zeldin criticized the state's decision to join California's Zero Emission Vehicle program that vows to end the sale of gasoline-powered only vehicles by 2035. READ MORE

Excerpt from CNN: One of Zeldin’s first tasks will likely be starting the process to overturn several of the Biden EPA’s biggest rules on climate, including tailpipe regulations for vehicles and rules aimed at slashing pollution from power plants and oil and gas producers.

Zeldin most recently chaired the China policy initiative at the America First Policy Institute, a nonprofit think tank founded to promote Trump’s agenda, where he had written on national security threats posed by China.

Zeldin on Monday told Fox News that he will pull back “left-wing” regulations and focus on “unleashing economic prosperity” through the agency.

“President Trump, when he called me up, gosh, he was rattling off 15, 20 different priorities, a clear focus. He wasn’t reading off of some sheet, it’s the top of his head. And if I challenged him to give me 50 more ideas of what to do with this agency to improve the economy, I’m confident he would have done that,” Zeldin said shortly after the announcement was made. READ MORE

Excerpt from Washington Post: “Lee, with a very strong legal background, has been a true fighter for America First policies,” Trump said in a statement Monday. “He will ensure fair and swift deregulatory decisions that will be enacted in a way to unleash the power of American businesses, while at the same time maintaining the highest environmental standards.”

Zeldin, 44, served four terms representing Long Island before losing the New York governor’s race to Democratic rival Kathy Hochul in 2022. A lawyer by trade, he lacks an extensive background in environmental policy.

During the race for governor, Zeldin criticized many of Hochul’s climate and energy policies. He called for reversing a ban on fracking in New York, and he described her policies pushing for the adoption of electric cars and electric heating “out of touch.” READ MORE