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Senate Democrats are planning to once again stage a series of overnight speeches on the Senate floor, this time in opposition to Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitts nomination to head the EPA.

We intend to stand our ground, said Delaware Sen.Thomas R. Carper, the rankingDemocrat on the Environmentand Public Works Committee. While Pruitt appears poised for confirmation, Carper said Democrats were not going quietly into the night.

[If] we go home, we go to bed, say, Thats it, we fought the good fight, its 10 oclock, were going to call it a day, theres zero chance we prevail, Carper said.

Carper was joined by fellow Democrats Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island, Edward J. Markey of Massachusetts, Jeff Merkley of Oregon and Tammy Duckworth of Illinois at a Thursdaypress conference to criticize Republican leadership for not delaying Pruitts confirmation.

[Dismantling Obama Climate Plan Wont be Easy for Trumps EPA Pick Pruitt]

To justify the delay, the Democrats cited ongoing litigation overemails between Pruitts office and fossil fuel industries. An emergency hearing in Oklahoma is scheduled for Thursdayafternoon, whena judge will rule whether the Center for Media and Democracy can obtain access to those emails.

The lawmakers acknowledged that if the judgeruled in the groups favor, senators would not have time to review the exchanges before a final confirmation vote Friday afternoon.

Thats the point, Whitehouse said. He accused GOP leaders of an epic ram job in pushing forward with Pruitts confirmation before senators had time to review those emails.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnellrejected the Democrats request to postpone votes on Pruitts nomination. On Thursday, the Kentucky Republicancalled on his fellow senators to confirmPruitt.

Hes exceptionally qualified. Hes dedicated to environmental protection, McConnell said. And, as someone with state government experience, he understands the real-world consequences of EPA actions and knows that balance is the key to making policies that are sustainable over the long term.

Democrats contend that Pruitts lawsuits brought against the EPA, and political donations hes received from the fossil fuel industry, show that his goals are contrary to the agency and his tenure would be mired with conflicts of interest.

This is the wolf into the lamb fold. This is wrong. This is an appalling conflict of interest, Whitehousesaid. And conflicts of interest, in my experience as a prosecutor, dont end well.

Contact Bowman at bridgetbowman@rollcall.com and follow her on Twitter @bridgetbhc.

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Original post:
Senate Democrats Plan All-Nighter Over EPA Nominee - Roll Call