US environmental agency puts 139 employees on leave

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency placed 139 employees on administrative leave after they signed a letter critical of President Donald Trump’s policies, with the EPA saying it has “zero-tolerance” for those sabotaging the government’s agenda. The letter was made public earlier this week and titled as a “Declaration of Dissent.” It accused the federal government of engaging in “harmful deregulation,” “ignoring scientific consensus to benefit polluters” and “promoting a culture of fear” within the agency. The letter came as another expected round of staff reductions looms and as the agency undergoes a major reorganization, including the dissolution of its office of research and the cancelling of billions of dollars in grants. Hundreds of current and recently terminated EPA employees had signed the letter. The public version of the letter, as of late Thursday, had taken the names of the signatories off. An earlier version of the le