Sen. Carper on Gina McCarthy: “Her Nomination Should Not Be a Partisan Issue”

WASHINGTON – Today, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.), Chairman of the Environment and Public Works (EPW) Subcommittee on Clean Air and Nuclear Safety, released the following statement when EPW approved of Gina McCarthy’s nomination to be Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA):

“Today, the Environment and Public Works Committee positively reported Gina McCarthy’s nomination to lead the Environmental Protection Agency to the full Senate. I was proud to vote for her. For years, as chairman of the clean air subcommittee, I’ve worked closely with Gina to reduce air pollution and ensure that we have both a clean environment and a strong economy. She’s a hard-working public servant who seeks consensus in everything she does. Her nomination should not be a partisan issue. Many people don’t know this, but Gina has worked for five Republican governors in her career, including last year’s Republican presidential candidate, Mitt Romney. In many ways, she should be the epitome of a bipartisan, consensus nominee to lead a Cabinet agency. I look at today’s vote as a glass half empty. While I’m glad our committee voted to support her nomination to lead the EPA today, I’m disappointed that it was on a strict party-line vote. I hope that when Gina’s nomination is on the Senate floor, my colleagues will remember her past service to Republican administrations, in addition to President Obama’s, and give this qualified nominee the positive support she deserves.”