The battle over EPA heats up ... yet again - July 29, 2008
The fighting between Congressional Democrats, led by Senator Barbara Boxer, and the head of the US Environmental Protection Agency just keeps heating up. Today, Boxer and three other senators called for Stephen Johnson to resign, saying they had "lost all confidence" in his ability to follow the law.
Johnson, of course, is the agency chief who went against his scientific staff's recommendations to allow California to regulate greenhouse-gas emissions in advance of any potential federal regulations. An agency deputy head has in recent weeks claimed that Johnson was actually leaning toward granting California its waiver until the White House pressured him otherwise. (Washington Post) Other emails that the White House didn't like - notably the one saying that greenhouse gases endanger the public - it simply refused to open.
To cap things off today, Boxer et al also sent a letter to the US attorney-general asking for an investigation as to whether Johnson lied when testifying in front of Congress on global warming. Meanwhile, agency staffers have been told not to talk to the media, politicians, or just about anyone about anything. All questions must go through the public affairs office (Washington Post).
One would be hard-pressed to think of an agency ever quite as demoralized as the EPA is these days.
