Obama
Obama on Transportation, Land Use and Energy Use
Stunning news from the White House: we actually have a US president who understands the connection between land use patterns and energy use. Obama’s stimulus bill was weak on spending for transit projects (as opposed to highway projects). But that was because it was a bill about jobs, and more highway projects just happened to …
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CONTINUE READINGA smorgasbord of smelt and salmon news
There have been several developments in the Delta water saga since I posted on the request for relief from water quality standards submitted by the state Department of Water Resources and federal Bureau of Reclamation, and the potential for conflict between the water needs of smelt and of salmon.
CONTINUE READINGMidnight regulations and how the Obama administration can improve federal regulation
There has been a lot of talk about “midnight regulations” issued or initiated by the Bush administration in its final days (including the one that is the subject of this post by Holly). Outgoing presidents, starting at least with Jimmy Carter, have had a practice of issuing many new regulatory decisions in a hurry as they leave office, with …
CONTINUE READINGBarack Obama: America’s #1 Liberal
…if you follow Robert Frost and define a liberal as a man “who is too broadminded to take his own side in a quarrel.” He lets Daschle go today after allegedly fully backing him yesterday. More to the point for this weblog, in the Senate, he completely checks out on the fight over transit funding, …
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CONTINUE READINGGobama Bounce?
Two days ago, the Emmett Center hosted what we thought would be a tidy, manageable panel and “roundtable discussion” on SB 375, California’s new anti-sprawl law and the state’s latest legislative attempt to tackle GHG emissions from passenger vehicles. In line with turnout to similar past events, we booked a room that holds 90 people …
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CONTINUE READINGNew federal appointees’ sharp differences will make EPA/OMB relationship one to watch
As Dan notes in an earlier post, Cass Sunstein has been selected to direct the White House office that oversees regulation by agencies, the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs within the Office of Management and budget. An in-depth article in today’s Los Angeles Times discusses the controversy over his nomination among environmental and labor advocates. From the Times: …
CONTINUE READINGDoes Anybody Know Who the Commerce Secretary Is?
Does anybody really care? Really. Its budget of between 6 and 7 billion dollars is by far the smallest of any Cabinet Department. That kind of money would be a rounding error for the Pentagon or HHS; hell, the Pentagon lost that much money in transit between Washington and Baghdad. And what really does it …
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CONTINUE READINGObama and Climate Change
The Obama Administration will face hard regulatory choices on climate change almost immediately.
CONTINUE READINGHitting the right notes on science
The environmental science community is welcoming the new Obama administration with open arms. That’s no surprise, of course — there was never any love lost between environmental scientists and the George W. Bush administration. But for the science community this transition is more than the departure of an enemy. So far, the new president is …
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CONTINUE READINGAudacious Energy Policy
In his inaugural address, this morning, it took President Obama a mere 228 words to mention the word “energy”. This is instructive when compared to George W. Bush’s second inaugural address in which he waited until – well, um…, he never used the word “energy”. But, to be fair, neither did Jimmy Carter, who took …
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