EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt and his aides have kept "secret" calendars and schedules to overtly hide controversial meetings or calls with industry representatives and others, according to a former EPA official who is expected to soon testify before Congress. A review of EPA documents by CNN found discrepancies between Pruitt's official calendar and other records.
As if disgraced former EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt didn’t have enough to worry about, now there’s evidence that he routinely falsified records to hide what he was doing from the public:
“EPA staffers met routinely in Pruitt’s office to ‘scrub,’ alter or remove from Pruitt’s official calendar numerous records because they might ‘look bad.’ ... some interactions were intentionally removed from Pruitt’s calendar after they occurred ... Pruitt’s aides would print sections of the private calendar containing details of events, gather around a table, sometimes in Pruitt’s office, and decide what would be omitted or altered on the public calendar. ... this often occurred under Pruitt’s direction.”
Needless to say, the information Pruitt tried to hide usually involved “meetings with industry executives and attorneys.” Ordinarily, the EPA Administrator “should not meet with industry representatives or stakeholders without fully disclosing those interactions to the public.” But this is the Trump administration, in which “ordinarily” doesn’t really exist.
A Georgia business owner is facing up to 20 years in prison after admitting to ordering employees to illegally fix documents.
Georgia Business Owner Facing Up To 20 Years In Prison For Altering Documents In Healthcare Scheme – Atlanta Georgia reporting
Brenda Hicks, 58, of Macon pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice on June 5.
Hicks, owner of Middle Georgia Family Rehab admitted to these acts after a federal investigation was opened into alleged improper healthcare billing by the business.
An audit was occurring and explained to the employees the documents the CID requested the business did not have.
She then instructed them to go into the system and pull any portions of the requested files, looking for hard copies of the records in a storage unit if needed, officials said.
Hicks basically asked employees to create or sign records as the records that were requested were either blank, or missing, officials said.
One employee expressed concern to the other employee that what they were doing was illegal and quit. The other employee complied with Hicks’ instructions and added notes and signatures to patient records as needed.
These doctored patient records were then produced and provided to the Civil Division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office
“Anyone who attempts to alter or destroy documents requested as part of a federal investigation will face federal penalties for breaking the law,” said U.S. Attorney Peter D. Leary. “For the sake of justice and truth, it is imperative that the integrity of the investigation is maintained for the benefit of all parties.”
Alvin Bragg. That's a sad, pathetic attempt to achieve an utmost undemocratic goal, attained through undemocratic methods... playing the law on that front and to that end?
Alvin Bragg. That's a sad, pathetic attempt to achieve an utmost undemocratic goal, attained through undemocratic methods... playing the law on that front and to that end?
