A group of 25 environmental activists stormed West Virginia Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin’s office Tuesday morning, demanding he vote against President-elect Donald Trump’s picks for key administration posts.
Activists carried a sign that read, “Democrats: You’re not climate deniers. Don’t vote like them.” Activists are specifically urging Manchin, a pro-coal Democrat, to vote against the confirmation of former Exxon CEO Rex Tillerson as secretary of state and Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt as Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator.
NOW: 25 activists occupy @Sen_JoeManchin office to demand he stand on the right side of history & #rejectREX & #StopPruitt. #TrumpVSallofus pic.twitter.com/XPItGfcVA7
— Devyn Powell (@DevynFromOregon) January 17, 2017
Environmentalists see Manchin as a potential defector who could buck his party and vote to confirm Trump’s nominees.
West Virginia voted overwhelmingly for Trump in the 2016 election. Trump promised to repeal environmental regulations targeting coal mining and power plants that environmentalists have spent the last eight years lobbying and campaigning for.
Trump’s margin in West Virginia was so wide, Manchin even said he wasn’t committed to staying with the Democratic Party. Now, activists are asking him not to cave to “Big Oil.”
Young people occupying @Sen_JoeManchin‘s office, demanding that he stop Trump’s #climate-denying Cabinet nominees! #RejectRex #StopPruitt pic.twitter.com/zXWkDWZ29M
— Collin Rees (@collinrees) January 17, 2017
Senators held Tillerson’s confirmation hearing last week, and are set to hold a hearing for Pruitt Wednesday.
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