In the waning days of the George W. Bush administration, federal agencies are shelling out new regulations that are very favorable to ranchers and farmers, oil drillers and miners, as well as outdoor recreation buffs using motorized vehicles.
The real question would be, where have they been the last 8 years? Why is the pro-business Bush administration taking all these good actions at the last minute?
You can bet that the ones that Obama can overturn by executive order, will be quickly. It may take a little longer if they have to go through the same federal rule making process that Bush did, but you can bet that sharp-eyed environmentalists already have their strategy underway.
For instance, the CAFO air pollution regulations largely exempt cattle and hog feedlots, as well as grazing cattle on ranches, from federal air pollution regulations. This is only sensible and fair--so much so, that's ludicrous that federal bureaucrats even had to issue a rule. What is really driving enviros nuts is that motorized recreational vehicles such as ATVs are going to be allowed in national parks.
Other regs make it easier to drill for oil or mine shale on federal lands. This is badly needed, to ever have any hope of bringing America to energy independence. But that doesn't mean the enviros aren't apoplectic. They don't care that over 60% of Americans favor expanded drilling and mining for energy development. They've never supported the democratic principle of majority rule, so why start now?
It's fun to watch them squirm, but it's only for a season. The Obama administration will be coming on like gangbusters, and these rulings won't stand. You can count on it.
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