EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt Holds Two Events in ND Tomorrow. Both are Closed to the Press.

Tomorrow the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Scott Pruitt will be in North Dakota. Pruitt will hold two events. The first will be in Fargo on Waters of the United States (WOTUS). The second will be in Grand Forks about energy. Two important topics for North Dakota’s top two industries, agriculture, and energy. Neither of them are open to the press.

We know it is closed to the press because of Congressman Kevin Cramer. At the beginning of the week, Cramer’s office released his schedule. According to the release, Cramer will attend both events with Pruitt. Below you can see the details.

Excerpt of Kevin Cramer’s Schedule

Instead of having reporters share an independent perspective of the topics discussed, the general public will likely be fed talking points by politicians. To me, this is a continuation of a troubling trend in modern day politics where important discussions on public policy are held behind closed doors. What the public often receives is information through the lens of a carefully crafted press release. This method allows the politician to better control the narrative. Press releases are okay as supplemental information to a story, but should not be the sole basis for reporting a discussion like this.

To reiterate, we have the head of a federal agency coming to our state to talk about very important topics. Our family farmers and energy workers deserve to know about those discussions removed from filtered talking points published in a press release from an office holder. That goes for both parties. Open it up to the free press for an honest assessment. What are these politicians afraid of?