The Environmental Protection Agency has terminated 388 probationary employees and placed nearly 200 employees on leave.
The White House has clarified remarks made by President Donald Trump during his first Cabinet meeting on Feb. 26, after he said Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin plans to initiate massive job cuts at the agency.
White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers said in a Feb. 27 statement to the media that Trump was referring to agency spending and not staffing levels when he said that Zeldin informed him that the agency will be “cutting 65 or so percent of the people from environmental.”
“President Trump, DOGE, and Administrator Zeldin are committed to cutting waste, fraud, and abuse across all agencies,” Rogers said, referring to the Department of Government Efficiency, led by businessman Elon Musk.
“After recently identifying $20 billion in fraudulent spending, Administrator Zeldin is committed to eliminating 65% of the EPA’s wasteful spending,” Rogers added, referencing the funding awarded to various environmental groups under the previous administration through the Inflation Reduction Act.
Zeldin said earlier this month that the…
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