Stephen Johnson
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National Journal on the EPA tailspin
The following post is by Earl Killian, guest blogger at Climate Progress.
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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has been failing spectacularly to do what the law requires, as determined by numerous federal judges (including the Supreme Court). For a more in-depth look, consider a pair of articles by Margaret Kriz in the National Journal. "Vanishing Act" looks at many of the failures of the EPA. "The President's Man" presents an interview with EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson and gives insight into his twisted thinking. For example, when asked about issuing ozone standards weaker than the unanimous recommendation of the EPA's independent Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee, Johnson replies:
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FOE to Bush: Pull Johnson out
Friend of the Earth is calling for the resignation of EPA chief Stephen Johnson.
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Johnson astonishes Whitehouse
I meant to highlight a post on Warming Law that contains this delightful bit from a recent hearing on the consequences of Mass. v. EPA: When asked to identify our most serious environmental challenge, [EPA administrator Stephen] Johnson again refused to say, explaining “I don’t see one being most serious.” Rhode Island Senator Sheldon Whitehouse […]
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Johnson goes flaccid on TRI
It's not the sexiest news in the world, but it's good: EPA head honcho Stephen Johnson has abandoned his effort to relax the requirements of the Toxics Release Inventory, one of the most unambiguously successful federal regulations of the post-war era.
Thanks, New Political Climate!
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Cloture invoked.
Early today, the Senate voted 61-37 for cloture and confirmed Stephen Johnson as head of the U.S. EPA.
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GOP to force Dems to release hold on Johnson?
Looks like the Senate GOPers may be looking to force a vote on Stephen Johnson's nomination to head the EPA.
As all the hip bloggers say:
Developing...
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All my life I’ve waited to use that headline.
As we noted in yesterday's Daily Grist, Sen. Thomas Carper (D-Del.) had threatened to put a hold on the confirmation of Stephen Johnson as head of the EPA. Carper is pissed about the Bushies' refusal to study two alternatives to their "Clear Skies" legislation.
Well, today he's gone and done it. "Carper said he would not lift the hold until the EPA gave him an 'ironclad' guarantee it would evaluate the other plans."
Stay tuned.
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EPA drops CHEERS study; Johnson confirmation to proceed
Score one for the Dems. Stephen Johnson on Friday agreed not to poison infants and toddlers with pesticides in exchange for Senate confirmation of his appointment to head the EPA.
Johnson -- a generally unobjectionable nominee, especially by Bush admin standards -- was expected to glide on through the confirmation process, but Sens. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) threw a wrench into matters on Wednesday, demanding that Johnson, who's now acting administrator of the EPA, permanently cancel the notorious CHEERS research. The Children's Environmental Exposure Research Study had, according to the New York Times, "offered $970, a free camcorder, a bib and a T-shirt to parents whose infants or babies were exposed to pesticides if the parents completed the two-year study. The requirements for participation were living in Duval County, Fla., having a baby under 3 months old or 9 to 12 months old, and 'spraying pesticides inside your home routinely.'" Oh, and a couple mil in funding for it was being put up by the American Chemistry Council, a trade group representing, among others, pesticide manufacturers.
After the study drew highly critical press (imagine that), Johnson last fall suspended it pending ethical review (which you would think would take, oh, about 20 seconds). Now, the study's dead for good.
And this is what counts as an environmental victory these days -- managing to thwart research that would use poor kids as guinea pigs for the pesticide industry.