NEW: Chemical Industry Boosts Gardner's Campaign As He's Set to Vote On Chemical Lobbyist to Head Consumer Safety
Gardner silent on another case of the fox guarding the henhouse
Denver, CO - The Colorado Sun reports that as Senator Cory Gardner is slated to vote on a former lobbyist from American Chemistry Council to be the top consumer safety watchdog in the country, the industry group went on air with a misleading ad boosting Gardner’s campaign. The suspiciously-timed ad comes as Gardner will likely be the deciding vote on the chemical lobbyist’s confirmation in the Senate Commerce Committee. Two other “Republican senators said they would oppose her nomination” because of her record on PFAS, but No Comment Cory “did not respond” to questions on the controversial nomination.
More from the Sun:
Another group running an ad on Cory Gardner’s behalf is the American Chemistry Council, which is celebrating the senator’s work to respond to the coronavirus crisis. The spot comes as a former top employee of the lobbying firm, Nancy Beck, goes before the Senate for consideration of her nomination to lead the Trump administration's Consumer Product Safety Commission.
Gardner, who sits on the committee spearheading the nomination hearing process, has not said whether he supports Beck’s controversial nomination. U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colorado, has demanded that Beck’s nomination be withdrawn because of her positions on regulations around so-called forever chemicals -- per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, also known as PFAS.
The lobbyist, Nancy Beck, has come under bipartisan scrutiny for her potential conflict of interest, record of “thwarting” consumer protections on toxic materials, and rolling back safety standards on harmful forever chemicals like PFAS. While Gardner has refused to speak out on Beck, Senator Bennet strongly condemned her nomination, saying she “put the health and safety of the American people at risk.”
Gardner has been a rubber stamp on nearly all of President Trump’s controversial nominees, including voting several times to let former corporate lobbyists regulate their own industries. Gardner voted to confirm a coal lobbyist Andrew Wheeler to lead the Environmental Protection Agency, refused to oppose anti-public lands zealot William Perry Pendley to lead the Bureau of Land Management, and voted for notorious school privatizer Betsy DeVos to oversee our public schools.
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