Nixon EPA chief criticizes Bush "war on the environment"

Don't miss Mother Jones's feature interview with Russell Train, EPA chief during the Nixon administration. Here's a glimpse: We’re at war in Iraq. They tell us we’re at war against terrorism. I’d say that George W. Bush has declared war on the environment. And I think that people ought to stand up and be counted in opposition to that. . . .

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Measure the rollback in your own state

How much have you been affected by the Bush administration's rollback of public health, safety, and environment protections? How much does your state need improved protections? Check out the excellent feature My Backyard from the Center for American Progress: a clickable map that allows you to go state by state and look up data on pollution, workplace health and safety, fuel economy, and more.

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Making cigarettes even less safe (can you believe it?)

This story comes packed with just enough irony of its own: Legislation just passed by Congress abolishes the requirement that the government inspect imported tobacco to ensure it is not laced with chemicals and pesticides banned in the United States but permitted elsewhere. That means imported leaf, which U.S. tobacco companies are increasingly relying on, could make cigarettes even more harmful, said Tom Glynn, director of science and trends for the American Cancer Society. --Nancy Zuckerbrod, " U.S. to Quit Inspecting Tobacco for Banned Chemicals and Pesticides," A.P., Oct. 18, 2004.

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Things getting better on the job or in the environment?

The administration has been replying to critics of the attack on regulatory policy that its choices are being proved right, because things are getting better on the job and in the environment. Reports suggest that the trends may not necessarily back the administration's claims about its policy choices.

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An alternative vision for protecting the public?

The excellent Newsday series "Erasing the Rules" concludes today with a look at Senator Kerry's legislative record and campaign platform and inquires whether they represent an alternative to current regulatory policy: In the mid-1990s when Republicans in Congress were pushing to make regulations harder to enact, consumer, labor and environmental groups sought an ally committed to government oversight and capable of grasping the complexity of the rules.

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Of foxes, henhouses, and unbreathable air

The excellent Newsday series, "Erasing the Rules," continues today with a focus on EPA. There have been some exceptions to the pattern, such as the EPA's adoption earlier this year of tough new emissions standards for diesel engines. But critics and many analysts say the common thread that ties together almost all of the administration's other environmental initiatives is to cushion the impact of regulations on business.

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Foxes in the henhouse, blood on the floor

Don't miss "Erasing the Rules," the excellent series in Newsday on the Bush administration regulatory record.

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From politicizing science to politicizing history

The Los Angeles Times is reporting a doozy: VP wife Lynne Cheney has long opposed the National History Standards because they contain too much actual history and haven't been politically slanted in favor of her more "positive" vision of America's past. When she realized that the Department of Education was circulating a 10-year-old guidebook for parents, "Helping Your Child Learn History," that mentioned the national standards, her staff communicated its displeasure to the Education Department.

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22-year-old Wildlife Protection Standard Waived

U.S. Forest Service posted a temporary final rule in the Federal Register last week that will rollback regulation to protect endangered fish and wildlife from logging and development in national forests. The new rule gives U.S. Forest Service officials flexibility in how they calculate the risk to fish and wildlife populations when reviewing road-building, logging or other proposals. The rule allows officials to waive the 22-year-old Reagan-era standard that requires that forests maintain "viable populations" of fish and wildlife.

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So much for hours-of-service win...

Remember the public interest victory in the hours-of-service case? A Department of Transportation agency proposed new rules governing the maximum number of hours in a stretch that trucking companies can force their workers to drive without rest or days off -- but the rule change would have permitted trucking companies to game the system and force their workers to drive much longer than even the old rules. Public Citizen won a court victory we described here.

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