Since the beginning of 2017, there have been innumerable protests for the impeachment of President Trump and resignation of a few other individuals holding high positions in public office. These protests occur over questionable or condemnable actions of that person. The Trump administration has had over 20 resignations or removals of aides, directors, and cabinet members ranging from Michael Flynn to Sean Spicer to Rex Tillerson. When someone, who is widely disliked, finally resigns, the question is whether the "next-in-line" person will do a better or worse job than the person who preceded.

EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt resigned on July 6thdue to his spending scandals and widespread dissatisfaction for his decisions in office. There have been widespread cheers from environmental groups, politicians, and concerned citizens. While Mr. Pruitt did roll back many environmental safeguards, collude with fossil fuel, chemical and mineral development companies, conceal facts and limit communication from the EPA, was it actually better that he left office?

His successor is Andrew Wheeler. Wheeler worked in the EPA from 1991 to 1995, during the Clinton Administration, and the EPA's Bronze Medal three times for his work on right-to-know, toxic chemicals, and pollution prevention issues. He served on the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works and later worked as a coal lobbyist for Murray Energy. Wheeler's humble beginnings in EPA make him sound better than Pruitt since he worked under the Bill Clinton and Al Gore Administration and won a few honors. His time in the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works may sound appealing, but it turns out that he supported the deregulation of greenhouse gas emissions and worked for Senators who denied climate change.

Of course, spending time as a coal lobbyist is a big red flag. Coal is the dirtiest fossil fuel, and basically, no-one in the coal industry accepts anthropologic climate change as fact. Putting Wheeler into the EPA Administrator position is almost like hitting the "self-destruct button" because unlike Pruitt, Wheeler previously worked in the EPA and then used his inside knowledge to aid climate deniers and Murray Energy.

If President Trump does resign, Mike Pence is unlikely to deviate from Trump's agenda, if not make it more extreme. If he was willing to run with Trump as his vice president, then he most likely agrees with Trump's positions on most if not all issues. Even before Pence made the choice to run for Trump, he already had low approval ratings in the state that he represented. When he was a member of the House and when he was Governor, he opposed same-sex marriage and expanding the civil rights of the LGBTQ community. When the Senate was split on confirming Betsy DeVos for Secretary of Education, he stepped in and voted to confirm her. His positions on immigration very much agree with that of President Trump. He opposes the DREAM Act, which gives undocumented children of parents who are illegal immigrants the opportunity to be granted permanent residency and praises anti-immigration legislation.

If you are dissatisfied with President Trump's policies and actions, then you will, most likely, not enjoy Mr. Pence's policies and actions either.

Removing and replacing someone in a top government position doesn't necessarily turn problems around. It can sometimes lead to the same problems reoccurring or even make matters worse because the person taking over the position was also appointed by the same president and holds the same views as the preceding official. If you are not satisfied with the performance of a government official, your best option is to vote in the upcoming elections. Voting is the best way to ensure that the person who takes over will make decisions that you support. If you have a specific issue or policy that you are concerned about, you should try calling or writing to your congressman, senator, or state representative.

Depending on the issue, you could change your own habits, from what products you buy to what decisions you make in the workplace to what you post on social media.