Whitehouse, a member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, on September 16 wrote to AFPI Interim President and CEO Greg Sindelar about the pro-Trump organization’s alleged role in the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision to rescind the Obama-era Endangerment Finding. The Rhode Island Democrat noted that the Endangerment Finding’s rescission would “cripple the federal government’s ability to combat climate pollution and mark an alarming retreat from decades of legal precedent, peer-reviewed science, and public health protections.”
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin has described the Endangerment Finding as the “holy grail of the climate change religion,” which has been used to justify over $1 trillion in regulations.
Whitehouse noted that AFPI has hailed the removal of the Endangerment Finding, calling it the “cornerstone of the radical climate agenda.”
“Given the billions at stake for polluting industry interests and significant potential conflicts of interest, the public deserves a full accounting of any efforts to influence this decision behind closed doors,” Whitehouse wrote to AFPI.
Subsequently, Whitehouse demanded a vast amount of AFPI communications, including:
Accordingly, by not later than September 30, 2025, please produce to my staff all documents dated from November 5, 2024, through July 29, 2025, in your possession, custody, or control— including but not limited to internal and external communications, memoranda, reports, meeting materials, presentations, and draft rescission language—containing any of the following words or phrases, or any variation thereof: “endangerment,” “tailpipe,” “consumer choice,” “preempt,” or “preemption.” For the avoidance of doubt, this request includes internal communications as well as external communications with executive branch officials, Trump Vance 2025 or Trump Vance Transition personnel, trade associations, and any other relevant parties.
Sindelar replied to Whitehouse, noting that AFPI has not benefited financially as the result of any federal policy change.
He explained, “The reason is simple: our founders aptly decided that AFPI will not receive a single corporate, foreign, or government dollar. Never have, never will.”
He added, “While liberal organizations, doomsday climate scam artists, and countless leftist politicians have raked in an untold amount of money pushing a radical climate agenda, AFPI has clean hands and a clear conscience. I hope you can say the same, notwithstanding your prior country club membership(s).”
A cursory glance at federal donation databases would reveal that Whitehouse receives significant funding from special interest groups such as the League of Conservation Voters and Democracy Engine.
Breitbart News
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