EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy hosted an "Ask me Anything" session on Reddit Wednesday, and users of the popular website were not impressed with her answers.
McCarthy hosted the AMA session to answer questions following the Obama administration’s release of aggressive new plans to regulate carbon emissions in the United States. However, McCarthy only answered 16 questions, and her answers were brief and, in the opinion of several commenters, excruciatingly vague and boring.
"We know what the science tells us—the time to act is now," McCarthy wrote in response to a question about the partisan debate over climate change. "There is nothing political about public health and clean air."
The top-rated comment on McCarthy’s AMA session was a profanity-laced tirade criticizing her lack of substantive responses to questions.
"16 g--damn responses," Reddit user "olliberallawyer" wrote. "16. In a f------ AMA? I upvoted as many as I can calling this s--- out as what it was: fraud, PR, disingenuous, bull----!"
"16 responses?" Mr. Olliberallawyer continued. "Not to mention it was not ‘ask you—HA HA, I mean your staffer—anything’ because [sic] you ignored every f------ question that wasn't towing your line."
"You are a shady politician and a worthless steward of the environment," the irate commenter continued. "F--- your incompent [sic] staffer for even suggesting this."
As of press time, Olliberallawyer’s comment had 248 "upvotes."
Rep. Mike Pompeo (R., Kansas) also dropped by the AMA session to ask McCarthy a question about the administration’s new proposals.
"Given the impact of such proposals on families and the affordability of energy, and the lack of substantive data showing that EPA’s proposals would do anything to roll back the effects of climate change, don’t you think we actually should wait for more empirical data to come in on these proposals?" Pompeo asked.
McCarthy did not respond to Pompeo’s question.
McCarthy’s top-rated comment garnered 14 upvotes. It was in response to a question about her opinion on The Simpsons Movie.
"This has been great—so many great questions," McCarthy wrote as she signed off. "Next time I'll have to type faster! Thanks everybody."