WASHINGTON (AP) – A Republican lawmaker says the head of the Environmental Protection Agency should be impeached.
Arizona Rep. Paul Gosar accuses EPA administrator Gina McCarthy of lying to Congress about an agency rule to protect small streams, tributaries and wetlands.
“McCarthy not only broke the law by lying to Congress, but in doing so she also lied to the American people in order to force misguided and overreaching regulations, which have no scientific basis, down our throats,” Gosar said in a statement, adding that EPA mandates under President Barack Obama “will kill hundreds of thousands of jobs and cause untold economic harm to communities throughout the country.”
In a letter to members of Congress, Gosar accused McCarthy of perjuring herself several times this year while testifying before congressional committees on the clean water rule. In each case, McCarthy was discussing details about how the rule was promulgated and its legal justification. Gosar and other Republicans oppose the rule and have supported GOP-led efforts to block it in Congress.
An EPA spokeswoman called McCarthy “a dedicated public servant who performs her duties with the utmost respect for the law.”