Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) took an opportunity to hijack an EPA budget hearing on May 13, 2026, to ask Trump official Lee Zeldin if he believes there is “abortion in the water.” How he answered the bizarre inquiry revealed more about the question than any other answer probably could. Zeldin appeared before the Senate Appropriations Committee to offer a defense of President Donald Trump’s fiscal year 2027 EPA budget request.
The president’s proposal would cut funding to the agency nearly in half. Murray came to the hearing armed with an October 2025 New York Times report that claims senior officials with the EPA directed scientists to look into how the government might track trace amounts of abortion medication in wastewater. The report was the foundation for Murray’s strange question.
“Do you seriously believe there’s abortion in the water, like some of the far-right activists are suggesting?” Murray asked Zeldin during the hearing, mischaracterizing the Times article in the process. “You just said ‘abortion in the water?'” Zeldin repeated, bewildered. Murray continued, saying, “That’s what some far-right activists are saying. That they have an audience, in the EPA, on that absurd issue.”
According to Seattle Red, Zeldin responded by saying, “I have not had a conversation with anyone at the agency as far as abortions in water. I don’t even know what you’re talking about.” While some on the left have accused Zeldin of dodging the question, the report noted that wasn’t what he was doing at all. He was saying he didn’t have the conversation that Murray suggested he’d had.
Earlier in the hearing, Zeldin had stated that unless a known pharmaceutical appeared on the EPA’s contaminant list, he was “not aware of the agency doing anything with that.” Clips of the exchange soon showed up on various social media platforms within an hour of it taking place. This is also not the first time that Murray has failed to do proper fact-checking.
The Washington Democrat has also mischaracterized the SAVE America Act in several public appearances and was called out for falsely claiming she had never heard a Democrat call for defunding Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Official records say otherwise. As you might imagine, the comment section on Facebook was chock full of great takes.
One user responded to the exchange by writing, “There’s definitely something in the water that she’s drinking.” Another wondered how everyone in the chamber kept a straight face. “How was the whole chamber able to restrain from busting out in uncontrolled laughter?” A third user wisecracked, “That’s what happens when you drink the bong water before work.”
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A user named Hank noted that trace amounts of any medication eventually gets into the water, writing, “I can understand that there may be abortion medication in the water. Every drug anybody takes ends up in the water at some point. But her comment doesn’t make any sense.” Another individual, Walter, humorously pointed out, “Note: This question was asked by someone who thinks men can get pregnant.”
Featured Image: screenshot from embedded video