Washington, June 30 (RHC)-- In the latest series of scandals for U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt, newly-released internal e-mails show his office discussed hiring the family friend of a fossil fuel lobbyist whose wife was renting Pruitt a Washington, D.C., condo at only $50 a night—far below market price. 

The e-mails were released as part of a Freedom of Information Act request filed by the Sierra Club.  In one of the e-mails, the lobbyist, J. Steven Hart, wrote to Pruitt’s chief of staff that his wife Vicki “has talked to Scott about this kid who is important to us.  He told Vicki to talk to you about how to handle this.”  Pruitt’s chief of staff replied: “On it.” 

In other e-mails, Hart also lobbied Pruitt’s office on behalf of Coca-Cola and the bank HSBC.  Pruitt has falsely claimed J. Steven Hart did not lobby the EPA last year. 

Meanwhile, BuzzFeed also reports other internal e-mails show that a month after becoming EPA administrator, Scott Pruitt told top executives with the American Petroleum Institute that he was looking to fill regional director positions within the agency.  The e-mails are the latest evidence Pruitt sought to recruit members of the fossil fuel industry to work at the EPA.