President-elect Donald Trump on Monday selected former Rep. Lee Zeldin of New York to oversee the Environmental Protection Agency in his administration.
In a statement announcing the appointment, Trump described the former four-term House Republican from Long Island as “a true fighter for America First policies.”
“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, including the cleanest air and water on the planet,” Trump said. “He will set new standards on environmental review and maintenance, that will allow the United States to grow in a healthy and well-structured way.”
Zeldin said it was “an honor to join President Trump’s Cabinet as EPA Administrator.”
“We will restore US energy dominance, revitalize our auto industry to bring back American jobs, and make the US the global leader of AI. We will do so while protecting access to clean air and water,” Zeldin said in a statement on X.
The New York Post first reported Zeldin’s appointment — Trump’s second Cabinet pick for his second term in office.
The president-elect has made other staffing announcements in recent days. Last week, he said that Susie Wiles, his campaign manager, would serve as White House chief of staff. On Sunday, Trump named immigration hardliner Tom Homan as his “border czar.”
Trump has indicated he plans to withdraw from the Paris climate accord, a move mirroring similar steps he took during his first administration. He has also called for repealing the Inflation Reduction Act, a signature legislative accomplishment by President Joe Biden. The law commits billions of dollars toward expanding clean energy to reduce U.S. greenhouse gas emissions.
Environmentalists bashed Trump’s EPA pick.
Sierra Club executive director Ben Jealous called Zeldin “an unqualified, anti-American worker who opposes efforts to safeguard our clean air and water.”
“Our lives, our livelihoods, and our collective future cannot afford Lee Zeldin — or anyone who seeks to carry out a mission antithetical to the EPA’s mission,” Jealous said in a statement. “We have made too much progress to allow Donald Trump and Lee Zeldin to take us back.”
Zeldin was heralded by Republicans for an unexpectedly close race for New York governor in 2022, when he lost to Democrat Kathy Hochul 53.1% to 46.7%. Some Republicans highlighted Zeldin’s performance as playing a role in helping Republicans flip four House seats in New York that year, in particular that of former Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney, who chaired the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.
