Bush sneaks through host of laws to undermine Obama

[luke]

Bush sneaks through host of laws to undermine Obama
The lame-duck Republican team is rushing through radical measures, from coal waste dumping to power stations in national parks, that will take months to overturn, reports Paul Harris in New York

After spending eight years at the helm of one of the most ideologically driven administrations in American history, George W. Bush is ending his presidency in characteristically aggressive fashion, with a swath of controversial measures designed to reward supporters and enrage opponents.

By the time he vacates the White House, he will have issued a record number of so-called 'midnight regulations' - so called because of the stealthy way they appear on the rule books - to undermine the administration of Barack Obama, many of which could take years to undo.

Dozens of new rules have already been introduced which critics say will diminish worker safety, pollute the environment, promote gun use and curtail abortion rights. Many rules promote the interests of large industries, such as coal mining or energy, which have energetically supported Bush during his two terms as president. More are expected this week.

America's attention is focused on the fate of the beleaguered car industry, still seeking backing in Washington for a multi-billion-dollar bail-out. But behind the scenes, the 'midnight' rules are being rushed through with little fanfare and minimal media attention. None of them would be likely to appeal to the incoming Obama team.

The regulations cover a vast policy area, ranging from healthcare to car safety to civil liberties. Many are focused on the environment and seek to ease regulations that limit pollution or restrict harmful industrial practices, such as dumping strip-mining waste.

The Bush moves have outraged many watchdog groups. 'The regulations we have seen so far have been pretty bad,' said Matt Madia, a regulatory policy analyst at OMB Watch. 'The effects of all this are going to be severe.'

Bush can pass the rules because of a loophole in US law allowing him to put last-minute regulations into the Code of Federal Regulations, rules that have the same force as law. He can carry out many of his political aims without needing to force new laws through Congress. Outgoing presidents often use the loophole in their last weeks in office, but Bush has done this far more than Bill Clinton or his father, George Bush sr. He is on track to issue more 'midnight regulations' than any other previous president.

Many of these are radical and appear to pay off big business allies of the Republican party. One rule will make it easier for coal companies to dump debris from strip mining into valleys and streams. The process is part of an environmentally damaging technique known as 'mountain-top removal mining'. It involves literally removing the top of a mountain to excavate a coal seam and pouring the debris into a valley, which is then filled up with rock. The new rule will make that dumping easier.

Another midnight regulation will allow power companies to build coal-fired power stations nearer to national parks. Yet another regulation will allow coal-fired stations to increase their emissions without installing new anti-pollution equipment.

The Environmental Defence Fund has called the moves a 'fire sale of epic size for coal'. Other environmental groups agree. 'The only motivation for some of these rules is to benefit the business interests that the Bush administration has served,' said Ed Hopkins, a director of environmental quality at the Sierra Club. A case in point would seem to be a rule that opens up millions of acres of land to oil shale extraction, which environmental groups say is highly pollutant.

There is a long list of other new regulations that have gone onto the books. One lengthens the number of hours that truck drivers can drive without rest. Another surrenders government control of rerouting the rail transport of hazardous materials around densely populated areas and gives it to the rail companies.

One more chips away at the protection of endangered species. Gun control is also weakened by allowing loaded and concealed guns to be carried in national parks. Abortion rights are hit by allowing healthcare workers to cite religious or moral grounds for opting out of carrying out certain medical procedures.

A common theme is shifting regulation of industry from government to the industries themselves, essentially promoting self-regulation. One rule transfers assessment of the impact of ocean-fishing away from federal inspectors to advisory groups linked to the fishing industry. Another allows factory farms to self-regulate disposal of pollutant run-off.

The White House denies it is sabotaging the new administration. It says many of the moves have been openly flagged for months. The spate of rules is going to be hard for Obama to quickly overcome. By issuing them early in the 'lame duck' period of office, the Bush administration has mostly dodged 30- or 60-day time limits that would have made undoing them relatively straightforward.

Obama's team will have to go through a more lengthy process of reversing them, as it is forced to open them to a period of public consulting. That means that undoing the damage could take months or even years, especially if corporations go to the courts to prevent changes.

At the same time, the Obama team will have a huge agenda on its plate as it inherits the economic crisis. Nevertheless, anti-midnight regulation groups are lobbying Obama's transition team to make sure Bush's new rules are changed as soon as possible. 'They are aware of this. The transition team has a list of things they want to undo,' said Madia.
Final reckoning

Bush's midnight regulations will:

• Make it easier for coal companies to dump waste from strip-mining into valleys and streams.
• Ease the building of coal-fired power stations nearer to national parks.
• Allow people to carry loaded and concealed weapons in national parks.
• Open up millions of acres to mining for oil shale.
• Allow healthcare workers to opt out of giving treatment for religious or moral reasons, thus weakening abortion rights.
• Hurt road safety by allowing truck drivers to stay at the wheel for 11 consecutive hours.

from http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/dec/14/george-bush-midnight-regulations

[Skylace]

Pharmacists are already allowed to opt out of filling specific prescriptions due to religious reasons (ie. birth control). Not that I like any of these laws but it seems he's not adding a lot of new ones he is just adding strength to ones that are already in place. As for the truck drivers, I know that most of them stay behind the wheel longer then the law allows already, so they are just making it legal for them to do what they have been doing for ages. Which isn't any better.
And gun laws, I now live in a state where all you need to do to get a fire arm is to have a PA drivers license and clean record. No waiting period. It wouldn't surprise me if they are already on National Park property. Gun laws in America are a joke.

[major.tom]

I wasn't aware that a President could just make laws (or even change them) unilaterally. Whatever happened to the checks and balances?

If this is, in fact, 100% legal and binding, this is something that should change. Unless giving an out-going president the rights of a King in his final days is what U.S. citizens want.

[Skylace]

That is my thoughts as well Major Tom. He may just be pushing through laws that have been just sitting there waiting for his signature is what is happening. He can't just pass a law on his own whim.

[luke]

yeah thats what i found mad major, here they'd have to put it through the commons - there would be debate and a vote, but there doesn't seem to be any of that here

[Skylace]

This explains it well. It's not as bad as it's making it out to be. It just makes things a bit more of a pain for the new administration coming in and Congress can still override it.

[faceless]

Isn't the real problem that if Congress does want to override the laws that they have to waste all that time which they could be putting towards other issues? It seems Bush is pissing in the well because he's been chucked off the farm.

[major.tom]

The time required to undo the "midnight regulations" is 1/2 of the problem. The other 1/2 is that until the regulation is officially canceled, it can be acted on with impunity.

Taking the dumping of animal waste into waterways as an example, reversing the rule only limits future harm -- not of much use once the damage is done.

In the interest of democracy, these regulations shouldn't be "in force" until ratified by the house and senate.