Trump Administration
Government Hires Shouldn’t Have to Take a MAGA Essay Test
Schedule F was bad, But Trump’s latest move is even worse.
The Trump Administration has adopted new hiring procedures that will impose ideological litmus tests in federal hiring. Job applicants will be graded on essays about their allegiance to “America’s founding principles” and their commitment to implementing Trump’s executive orders. These new essay questions have little to do with the jobs of most government and employees and more to do with ideological conformity. They violate both the Civil Service statute and the First Amendment.
CONTINUE READINGEnvironmental Rollbacks: Will the Trump Administration Overplay Its Hand?
The odds are good that Trump agencies will go too far out on a limb.
The Trump Administration’s tendency to rely on bold legal arguments rather than detailed technical ones is a disadvantage in court. Courts defer to agencies on factual matters, especially those that involve technical expertise. Now that Chevron has been overruled, however, legal arguments by agencies don’t get the same deference. Thus, the chances of a judicial reversal are higher when the agency relies on purely legal grounds.
CONTINUE READINGWhat Happened to EPA Enforcement?
Enforcement efforts peaked long ago and have been in long-term decline. Trump will accelerate that.
There has been a long-term decline in EPA enforcement since the late Bush Administration. The numbers raise three questions: What’s behind the long-term trend? Why has pollution generally continued to decline despite weaker enforcement? And how bad will things be under Trump II? As to the third question, Trump has already made it clear that we can expect environmental enforcement to crash and burn in the next four years.
CONTINUE READINGExecutive Disorders
One after another, Trump has let loose destructive blasts at the environment to promote fossil fuels, mining, and logging.
We all know that Trump has issued a slew of executive orders since taking the oath of office. We also know that many of these are aimed to promoting fossil fuels, mining, and logging at the expense of the environment, while disfavoring renewable energy. Still, it’s impressive when you put the list together to see the full onslaught.
CONTINUE READINGTrump’s Self-Defeating NEPA “Reforms”
Rather than streamlining the process, Trump is gumming up the works.
Trump has taken some dramatic steps in the name of improving use of NEPA, the statute governing environmental reviews of projects. The goal is to speed up the permitting process and make it more efficient. The reality is that his efforts will create chaos and uncertainty, with the likely effect of slowing things down.
CONTINUE READINGNo, DOE, You Can’t Roll Back Product Efficiency Standards
Congress wanted greater energy efficiency over time and banned rollbacks.
The Department of Energy is proposing to rescind key energy efficiency requirements. It is beyond ironic that it is attempting to do so at a time when the President has proclaimed an energy emergency. Trump says the grid is struggling desperately to meet surging power demand. That’s a strange time to eliminate regulations that are saving energy. DOE’s action is also illegal, because the law in question has a provision prohibiting rollbacks. Congress wanted efficiency standards to get tougher over time and included an anti-rollback provision to make sure of that.
CONTINUE READINGDOJ vs. C&T
What Trump’s new lawsuits against two states may mean for California’s cap-and-trade program.
As my UCLA Law colleague Ann Carlson described last week, Trump’s DOJ has filed two pretty extraordinary lawsuits against the states of Michigan and Hawaii trying to block those states — preemptively — from bringing suit against fossil fuel companies for climate harms. As Ann points out, these DOJ suits are among the first salvos …
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CONTINUE READINGDefunding the Energy Transition
The President Proposes Deep Cuts to Climate and Clean Energy Spending for FY 2026
On May 2nd, the White House released what is generally referred to as a “skinny” budget request outlining priorities for discretionary spending for fiscal year 2026. A full federal budget proposal is expected later this month. The “skinny” budget contains, by the White House’s calculations, $163 billion in non-defense discretionary spending cuts, which it argues …
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CONTINUE READINGWillful Ignorance as Government Policy
The Trump Administration is systematically shutting down sources of vital information.
There is a deep anti-intellectualism embedded in MAGA. As RFK Jr. advises people, why pay attention to scientists when you can just “do the research” in the far corners of the internet?
There’s also the fear that data and research may not fit its political agenda. For instance, better information about extreme weather could support more robust programs to deal with those threats rather than supporting massive budget cuts. More robust government programs aren’t part of the MAGA agenda. Even worse, information about extreme weather would also shed light on climate change, a taboo subject.
The Chutzpah is Stunning
The Trump Administration is suing to block state climate lawsuits based on Clean Air Act Preemption.
If nothing else, you have to give credit to the Trump Administration for incredible gall. Yesterday, the Department of Justice filed suit against Michigan and Hawaii seeking to stop those states from filing lawsuits against fossil fuel companies for climate damages. The fact that DOJ is seeking to prevent even the filing of the lawsuits …
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