Staffers at the Environmental Protection Agency who signed a letter of dissent against President Donald Trump have been placed on leave, reports The Hill.
"The Environmental Protection Agency has a zero-tolerance policy for career bureaucrats unlawfully undermining, sabotaging, and undercutting the administration's agenda as voted for by the great people of this country last November," EPA spokeswoman Brigit Hirsch said in a written statement.
A group of more than 170 employees at the EPA on Monday published a declaration of dissent from policies under the Trump administration, saying they "undermine the EPA mission of protecting human health and the environment."
"Since the Agency's founding in 1970, EPA has accomplished this mission by leveraging science, funding, and expert staff in service to the American people. Today, we stand together in dissent against the current administration's focus on harmful deregulation, mischaracterization of previous EPA actions, and disregard for scientific expertise," the declaration states.
The EPA responded to the letter with a statement saying the policy decisions "are a result of a process where Administrator [Lee] Zeldin is briefed on the latest research and science by EPA's career professionals and the vast majority who are consummate professionals who take pride in the work this agency does day in and day out," reported The Associated Press.
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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