Bush's environmental record—It's very disappointing that Kerry has said so little about the Bush environmental record, probably the worst in modern U.S. history. I assume it's based on poll research that dictates which issues receive the most emphasis, or perhaps they think it will not appeal to the middle-of-the-road voters. It seems to mee like a major miscalculation on the part of the Kerry campaign.

The longest section in the book One Thousand Reasons: The Appalling Record of the Bush Presidency is on the environment. I'll pick a few reasons at random:

327. Bush air pollution plan weakens current law, threatens public health—The Bush administration's air pollution plan, misleadingly dubbed the "Clear Skies Initiative," was reintroduced in Congress. If enacted, the plan would weaken public health protections of the current Clean Air Act. It would delay and dilute cuts in power plants' sulfur, nitrogen and mercury pollution compared to timely enforcement of current law. By allowing industry to make fewer reductions in toxic pollution over a much longer period of time than current law, critics say the plan would cost thousands of lives, intensify global warming and reward polluting industries that have been flouting the law for years. NRDC Thursday February 27, 2003

248. Environment: EPA admits clean water takes back seat to war on terrorism—Don't you know there's a war on? That is why the Environmental Protection Agency is no longer making it a priority to clean up the nation's rivers, streams and lakes, according to the agency's chief enforcer of the Clean Water Act. Testifying before a Senate environmental committee, G. Tracy Mehan III, EPA's assistant administrator for water, said efforts to combat terrorism and help the economy leave little resources to fight water pollution. NRDC Tuesday October 08, 2002

posted by Bruce Wright at 10:45 AM #