Speculation is growing that U.S. EPA Administrator Christie Whitman might resign now that the Bush administration has a GOP-controlled Congress in its holster and its sights set on further environmental rollbacks. Whitman has won favor neither from environmentalists, nor from industry lobbyists. Environmentalists say she has caved to others in the administration on important issues, while lobbyists were skeptical of her appointment from the start when she arrived in Washington, D.C., with light-green credentials. Whitman’s staff says she has no plans to step down. But that hasn’t stopped Beltway gabbers from fingering John Engler, Michigan’s outgoing Republican governor, and David Struhs, the current head of Florida’s Department of Environmental Protection, as possible replacements. Engler fought many battles with Michigan environmentalists, while Struhs has won moderate praise from some greenies.
