Story highlights President Donald Trump announced his decision to withdraw the US from the Paris climate accord Thursday

Pruitt told Tapper: 'We owe no apologies to other nations for our environmental stewardship"

Washington (CNN) Environmental Protection Agency head Scott Pruitt on Thursday would not say whether President Donald Trump still considers climate change a "hoax."

When flatly asked by CNN's Jake Tapper, "Does the President believe climate change is a hoax?" the EPA administrator responded: "This is not about whether climate change is occurring or not."

"This is about making sure that America, as we negotiate CO2 reductions, that we do so with an 'America First' approach," Pruitt said on "The Lead" Thursday.

Pruitt called the Paris agreement a "bad deal for this country," and echoed Trump's assertion that the deal puts the US at "an economic disadvantage."

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