Categories
Government

Trump Transition Leaves Chaos in Wake

Storm with lightning

Former EPA staffers said Wednesday the restrictions imposed under Trump far exceed the practices of past administrations.Update:

The AP has news that the EPA must submit all studies and data to review by political appointees.

Former EPA staffers said Wednesday the restrictions imposed under Trump far exceed the practices of past administrations.

Earlier:

It’s not been a week and already the Trump transition team has left chaos in its wake.

It has issued a series of gag orders, which in themselves, aren’t unusual for a transition. As the New York Times notes:

Longtime employees at three of the agencies — including some career environmental regulators who conceded that they remained worried about what President Trump might do on policy matters — said such orders were not much different from those delivered by the Obama administration as it shifted policies from the departing White House of George W. Bush. They called reactions to the agency memos overblown.

However, the orders went beyond the typical “don’t make statements to the press for the department until the department head is in place”  normal for a Presidential transition. They included orders freezing the publication of scientific reports and data, as well as information that is normally given to the public as part of the organization’s functions.  That they did so is probably due to the team’s inexperience, rather than an attempt to block citizen access to the data. The end result, though, is the same: concern and confusion.

Continue reading “Trump Transition Leaves Chaos in Wake”
Categories
Environment Political

Trump Signs Executive Orders Reversing Dakota and Keystone Pipeline Decisions

Dakota pipeline protest
Dakota pipeline protest

Trump has signed executive orders reversing President Obama’s administration’s decisions on both the Keystone and the Dakota pipelines.

The Dakota pipeline is currently under review by the Army Corps of Engineers. The Corps is preparing an Environmental Impact Statement on the route and alternatives. Trump can’t just upend this effort with an executive order—not without Earth Justice or other environmental organization easily being able to get an injunction against the order in court. I expect a court challenge against this exeutive order within a day

Unfortunately, Obama’s Keystone Pipeline decision could be more easily undone. The original State Department review of the Pipeline didn’t find it to be an environmental risk. Later, State found that the Pipeline would run counter to the US efforts to combat climate challenge, but this finding was based on cheap oil. Once the price of oil rises, to $65.00 a barrel or more, than this decision would no longer be considered viable. We could challenge a Keystone decision in court, but have less chance of success.

The claims about jobs associated with the pipeline are exaggerated. Yes, there will be construction jobs to build the pipelines, but, ironically enough, many of those jobs will most likely be filled by undocumented workers from Mexico. Construction is the second largest employer of undocumented workers in the US.

Once the pipelines are built, though, the number of jobs provided is tiny, measuring in the 100s, if that.

US energy costs won’t decrease, either, especially with the Keystone pipeline. Much of the refined gas, diesel, and jet fuel is likely to be exported out of the country.

What we will see are increased environmental costs. Companies are responsible for oil spills, but it’s uncanny how all too often, we taxpayers end up footing the bill for oil clean up. In addition, both pipelines are a major risk to drinking water, as well as vital aquifers for agricultural irrigation. Today, the Canadian government noted that one pipeline spilled 200,000 liters of oil in aboriginal land, following another major spill that shut off the supply of water to two major cities.

We’ll absorb the environmental damage, including the impact of the refining, yet only the oil companies will truly benefit.

Photo courtesy Fibonacci Blue CC BY 2.0

Categories
Documents Political

The Whitehouse.gov web site changes and the Transition Plan

snapshot of archived site
Snapshot of archived site

Several people have tweeted about how the climate change page is no longer posted to the whitehouse.gov web site. What they’re not aware of is that this change was planned starting last October.

First of all, whitehouse.gov reflects whoever is the occupant of the White House. Unlike the EPA or Department of Labor web sites, we shouldn’t be surprised to see sweeping changes during this transition.

The National Archives and Record Administration has archived the Obama’s web pages, as well as Barack and Michelle Obama’s official POTUS and FLOTUS twitter accounts. So the pages aren’t gone. What you see now is what Trump’s team has put together during the transition. The pages specific to the tenant are going to be different.

In addition, the non-profit Archive.org has preserved the Obama whitehouse.gov web pages, in addition to all government web pages. Yes, including the climate change page.

(If you’re feeling generous, Archive.org could use a donation to help with expenses.)

This web site change is part of the transition, and not unexpected. When we should be concerned is when we see pages disappear from sites like the EPA and the Department of Labor once Trump’s cabinet members have taken over the departments.

 

Categories
Political

Power to the People and Saturday’s March

Prints of hands on rusted steel girder

I don’t join “movements”. I’ve seen them co-opted too many times.

I saw this with Blogher, which was supposed to be a movement to give attention and voice to women writers. But three people turned it into a profit-making venture and ruined everything.

We also saw this with Occupy and Black Lives Matter.

Now we’re seeing it with the Women’s March, as one of the self-appointed  leaders  used the event to slam Hillary Clinton by deliberately leaving her name off a list of women who have led the way in this fight. This, even though the list started off with an unattributed Hillary Clinton quote.

The inevitable problems that typically occur with any “movement” have surfaced, and some have talked about not marching. However, what we have to remember is that though some people seek to co-opt a “movement”, they can’t steal the power and the passion that started it.

I hope people, all people, march tomorrow…not for the Women’s March, the movement, but for your own passion. Whatever led you to want to march isn’t gone.

As for me, I have all my feelers out and ready to expose any and all actions Trump, his cabinet, and this Congress do, starting with today’s signed Executive orders. That’s how I march: across the page.

Power to the people.

Categories
Government

“You know, I’m, like, a smart person”

Trump at rally
Photo by Gage Skidmore

Among all of the discussion about the Russian involvement in getting Trump elected, one item hasn’t yet received much play in the press.

In an interview with Fox on Sunday, and excerpted in a New York Times story:

He also indicated that, as president, he would not take the daily intelligence briefing that President Obama and his predecessors have received. Mr. Trump, who has received the briefing sparingly as president-elect, said that it was often repetitive and that he would take it “when I need it.” He said his vice president, Mike Pence, would receive the daily briefing.

“You know, I’m, like, a smart person. I don’t have to be told the same thing in the same words every single day for the next eight years,” he said. He added that he had instructed the officials who give the briefing: “‘If something should change from this point, immediately call me. I’m available on a one-minute’s notice.’”

A man who didn’t even know that Russia had already invaded the Ukraine is a man who needs more information, not less. The President’s Daily Brief has, in one form or another, been given to the President and other relevant Executive Branch personnel since 1961. That’s over half of a century.

The purpose of the briefing is to give the Commander-in-Chief a synopsis of important intelligence events, including updates on previous intelligence releases. We can actually look at PDBs from several administrations at the CIA. I’ve looked at several. They’re not large, they don’t take much time, and they all contain something new, relevant, and important.

Trump’s disinterest in keeping up-to-date on important security information is the most profound abrogation of responsibility ever exhibited by a person about to take command of our nuclear codes and the combined might of our military.

Pence being given the PDB is not a sufficient replacement. No President has ever turned over their Commander-in-Chief responsibilities to their Vice President—not without being dead or completely incapacitated.

Photo by Gage Skidmore CC BY-SA 2.0