Trump Administration
The Forgotten Constitution
There’s a lot more than the “executive power” in there.
To hear Trump & Co., you might think that the Constitution was one sentence long, with that sentence vesting the executive power in the President. That’s the theory behind his efforts to remake the government – including environmental regulation – single-handedly. But there’s a lot more in there. Much of that forgotten language is directly relevant to the presidential actions that are now shaking the government, including environmental governance.
CONTINUE READINGThe Color PURPA
A Win for Solar– And a Glimpse of Life After Chevron
The majority in a recent case — an Obama appointeet and a Trump appointee — ruled in favor of renewable energy. Even without Chevron deference, they were able to conclude that the statute favored solar producers. And unlike a win under Chevron, this one can’t be reversed by a more conservative agency — it’s etched in stone.
CONTINUE READINGViolations of Free Speech at EPA
EPA employees were within their rights with the dissent letter they wrote.
I know it must be a shock to the Trump Administration that even lowly civil servants — I’m sure they would put the emphasis on “servants” — have rights that Important People like them are obliged to respect. But we still live in a democracy, and as the Supreme Court once said, government employees don’t leave their First Amendment rights at the door.
CONTINUE READINGReconciliation and Public Lands Part 2
Final legislation is narrower than House bill, focused on fossil fuel leasing on federal lands.
As a (belated) follow-up from my post this summer about the House version of the reconciliation bill, here is a summary of the key public lands provisions of the reconciliation bill as finally enacted. In general, the scope of what is covered is substantially less than what was in the House bill, in part because …
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CONTINUE READINGParsing the 11th Circuit’s “Alligator Alcatraz” decision
Panel majority disingenuously blocks interim relief.
Last week, a divided panel of the 11th Circuit US Court of Appeals stayed the preliminary injunction issued by a District Court halting use of the Everglades detention center the Trump Administration loves to call “Alligator Alcatraz” pending the outcome of NEPA litigation. The preliminary injunction was a bit aggressive — the trial court had …
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CONTINUE READINGA Clear and Present Danger to American Health
We’re all – each of us individually — less safe than we were a year ago.
RFK Jr. is purging the government of anyone who actually believes in science. What’s happening to public health under his leadership isn’t unique. All across the government, Trump is at war with science, cancelling billions of dollars of biomedical, energy, and climate research; closing EPA’s science department; replacing hard scientific evidence with climate denial as official dogma. This is a recipe for disaster, like closing your eyes will flying a plane.
CONTINUE READING“Degrowth Donald”
We now have ample examples that Donald Trump is not an abundance President
The title of this blog post comes from this article, where the author originally humorously tagged Donald Trump as a degrowth activist because of his opposition to renewables, his tariffs to constrain trade, and the potential economic impacts of those policies. Except now it’s not so humorous. Turns out that having the federal government capriciously …
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CONTINUE READINGWhere Should The United Nations Move?
The Trump Administration has abandoned the world, and the world should return the favor — with a climate twist.
You might have missed it amidst the sewer hose of feces that Donald Trump’s regime is spraying on the nation and the world, but the United States announced last week that it will not extend a visa to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to attend the United Nations General Assembly. I’ve been a Zionist all …
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CONTINUE READINGThank You, President Trump, for Opening the Door to Carbon Tariffs
Democrats should make it clear that this will be on the agenda if the Supreme Court upholds Trump’s tariffs.
As a matter of policy, a border adjustment for carbon emissions is much more defensible than the kinds of tariffs that Trump is proposing. And conservatives need to know that what is sauce of the goose is sauce for the gander. Or to switch metaphors, liberals need to show that they’re willing to move beyond bringing baked goods to a gunfight.
CONTINUE READINGThe Trump Administration takes on the International Maritime Organization
International Maritime Organization
Once again, the new US thumbs its nose at international consensus.
Despite its constant chaos, the Trump administration is at base quite consistent in its approach to both international law and climate change — it seeks to minimize international cooperation while maximizing greenhouse gas emissions. No surprise, then, that the Secretaries of State, Energy, Commerce and Transportation last month issued a joint statement critical of the …
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