George Bush begins his final assault

While everyone's preoccupied with the election (and with good reason), George Bush is going about his usual business of taking care of business. A George Bush full-frontal assault in the name of cronyism usually means bad things for the general populace. This time is no exception. It appears that the Bush administration is poised to enact a number of federal regulations that will weaken protections for the environment and potentially compromise public safety. Some of these regulations will ease rules for or lift constraints on private industry (such as power plants, mines and farms).

For example, one rule (proposed by the National Marine Fisheries Service) would eliminate the requirement that environmental impact studies be prepared for certain fisheries-management decisions. According to PEW research, this proposed new rule is "wildly unpopular," inspiring 194,000 public comments, as well as protests from 80 members of Congress and 160 conservation groups. In spite of this, unnamed sources have reported that the administration has promised to have this rule enacted by the end of November.

Another rule showing blatant disregard for the public health would (get ready) allow current emissions from a power plant to match the highest levels produced by that plant. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is opposed to this rule because it worses global warming by allowing millions of tons of additional carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. As if this isn't enough, two additional rules would continue to weaken air quality standards.

One would ease limits on emissions from coal-fired power plants located near national parks. Another rule would allow increased emissions from oil refineries, chemical factories and other industrial plants with complex manufacturing operations. What exactly are complex manufacturing operations, and who makes those judgments? That sounds pretty broad to me. Continuing the environmental assault, the Bush administration is considering a new federal regulation that would ease rules designed to keep coal slurry waste from finding its way into Appalachian streams. Still others could compromise the safety of the general public.

It's a good thing for George Bush that his everyday actions have become pretty irrelevant in the publics eye. That's what he's counting on. He talks tough about terrorism and continuously reiterates our need to be vigilant. George Bush uses the shadow 'war on terror' to justify every vile action he's approved during his term of service. In the meantime, he's busy behind the scenes supporting new regulations that compromise our safety by relaxing counter-terrorism rules requiring customs brokers to provide shipping data in advance. So much for the Bush administration's commitment to securing our ports. This is one president who has absolutely no scruples. There hasn't been one president like him since Tricky occupied the oval office. George W. Bush could care less about being a sell out. He could care less about his reputation. He's only concerned with accomplishing as much as he can for his business friends before his term is up. He knows damned right well that the American people have a short memory. After all, Richard Nixon - once remembered in infamy - practically died at the top of the respectability meter. It's an amazing phenomenon.

Unfortunately, a new administration will not easily be able to roll back these regulations once they have taken effect. This requires labor-intensive regulatory proceedings, including lengthy periods of public comment, drafting of new regulations and (mandated) reanalysis. In summary, President Bush is taking a parting shot at the American people by guaranteeing them dirtier air and water for years to come. Did we really expect anything else from a president who has consistently shown a blatant disregard for the welfare of the American people and the law of the land?

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