Trump taps billionaire regulatory foe Icahn for special role
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Donald Trump has chosen billionaire investor Carl Icahn as a special advisor on regulatory matters.
Friends of the Earth Climate and Energy Director Ben Schreiber issued the following statement and background:
Once again Donald Trump has chosen a billionaire who will make himself rich at the expense of the American people. Carl Icahn’s vast fossil fuel holdings should disqualify him from any role in reviewing regulations designed to protect public health and the environment. Icahn’s career shows he is more interested in gutting companies for his personal profit than he is creating jobs. This is just the latest indication that Trump is building a kleptocracy that will steal from the American public and give to the rich and well connected.
Background information on Icahn’s environmental record:
1) Icahn owns considerable fossil fuel holdings, including a majority stake in independent refining company CVR.
2) Icahn’s current portfolio includes investments in a range of other fossil fuel and polluting industries, including liquefied natural gas exporter Cheniere and mining giant Freeport McMoRan.
3) Icahn has claimed the EPA has “run amok with these crazy regulations.”
4) Icahn was involved in Trump’s vetting process for the Environmental Protection Agency. That process resulted in the nomination of climate denier Scott Pruitt for EPA administrator.
5) Icahn has said that Obama’s regulations are costing businesses but ignores that the costs are more than offset by economic, public health, and jobs-related benefits.
For more information contact:
Ben Schreiber, Climate Director (202) 280-8743, [email protected]
Michael Khoo, communications, (202) 669-7911, [email protected]