Sheldon Whitehouse Grills EPA Administrator on GGRF Freeze and "Criminal" Scheme

Questions Regarding GGRF Funds Freeze

• ❓ Senator Whitehouse inquired about EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin's involvement in the FBI's directive to freeze GGRF funds at City Bank on February 17th.
• 💡 Zeldin stated he was made aware of the freeze shortly after it was instituted by City Bank and did not have direct involvement.
• 📰 Zeldin also mentioned learning about the resignation of the criminal chief of the DC US attorney's office over this matter through newspaper reports.

Zeldin's "Criminal" Scheme Statements

• 🗣️ Whitehouse highlighted Zeldin's February 23rd statement calling the GGRF scheme "criminal" and sought to establish what information Zeldin possessed at that time.
• 🗓️ He also referenced Zeldin's March 6th statements on Fox News, characterizing the situation as a "kickback, a theft or graft, or all of the above," and requested this be added to a timeline of Zeldin's knowledge.

Legal Vulnerabilities and Investigation Status

• 📧 Between March 9th and 10th, EPA and DOJ emails revealed warnings from EPA's top career attorney, Jim Payne, about "significant legal vulnerabilities" concerning the City Bank freeze.
• ⚖️ Zeldin speculated these vulnerabilities might relate to the venue and jurisdiction, suggesting the Court of Federal Claims would be the appropriate venue for breach of contract disputes, not a district court.
• 📰 Regarding a New York Times report suggesting the investigation is closing, Whitehouse was directed to ask the Justice Department for clarification, as Zeldin stated his focus is on the EPA.

EPA Lawyers' Court Statements

• 🚫 In a circuit court of appeals, DOJ lawyers representing EPA admitted they are "not accusing anybody of fraud," and EPA reiterated that no grantee had engaged in fraud, waste, or abuse.
• 🗣️ Whitehouse pressed Zeldin on whether he stood by these statements made by his lawyers in court.
• 📝 Zeldin expressed a desire to go through the evidence of waste and abuse but was cut off due to time constraints, with Whitehouse offering to submit a list of evidence.