Article snippet: MORE, the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), faced a barrage of tough questions from lawmakers Thursday as he testified in front of two House committees. Pruitt, who has been embroiled in controversy for weeks, fought back aggressively against his critics and dismissed the negative headlines about his tenure as “fiction.” Here are five takeaways from his big day on Capitol Hill. He escaped disaster Pruitt testified for nearly six hours, a grueling task for any Cabinet member, and seemed to mostly escape unscathed. The hearings lacked fireworks, even as Democrats took turns excoriating the EPA chief and, in some cases, calling for him to resign. Pruitt came prepared to answer questions about his spending and other ethics controversies. He tackled reports of his costs head-on in his opening statement, blaming the media for taking attention away from his regulatory work. “Facts are facts and fiction is fiction. A lie doesn't just become the truth because it’s on the front page of a newspaper,” Pruitt said in both of his opening statements. The former Oklahoma Attorney General appeared to have an answer prepared for every question thrown at him ranging, from his use of a privacy booth, to his spending on his round the clock security team to raises approved for EPA staffers. Pruitt didn’t once raise his voice or appear to be frazzled by the round of at times rapid-fire questions thrown at him. But by the final panel, lawmakers appeared to ... Link to the full article to read more