The Bush administration is holding up new regs approved a year ago that’d make ships go more slowly in order to protect North Atlantic right whales. (The White House Council of Economic Advisors is now reviewing causes of right whale deaths, a task already done by marine experts.)

Not a big surprise. Saddest part is that it’s doing so, it seems, at the request of foreign shipping companies, who don’t care about the U.S.’ endangered species or laws regarding them. And why should they? There’s only 300 of these creatures left, hardly enough to quibble about …