Scott Pruitt to head the EPA

[swake]

That is all folks....

[Townsend]

And here is more:

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/07/us/politics/scott-pruitt-epa-trump.html?_r=0

The Earth is going to die

[Conan71]

What could possibly go wrong?

[cannon_fodder]

Lets see if I have this right...

- Head of the EPA thinks the EPA has no place in government and seems to have covered up the link of the energy industry to earthquakes
- Head of education thinks public education is a hindrance to society when public money could go to religious schools (but hey, she also inherited tons of money and gave a lot o the Donald, right?).
- The Defense Secretary is a retired general nicknamed "mad dog" who was discharged by the DOD (guy could be a great general, but civilian control of the DOD is kind of important).
- DHS secretary is another retired general, who used to run Guantanamo Bay
- National security adviser is a retired general known for conspiracy theories, his subordinates called "Flynn facts," before he was discharged fro the DOD. Tried to get his son security clearance before he seems to have unapologetically inspired an attack on a pizza parlor over a conspiracy theory. Criticized for anti-Muslim rhetoric.
- The CIA director thinks we need a database connecting all information on all citizens and seems to think that the 4th Amendment is a hindrance to democracy. Criticized for anti-Muslim rhetoric.
- His HUD director has acknowledged having no experience in government, running a huge organization, or anything that HUD actually does ($60bil agency with ~10k employees!).
- The attorney general was OK with the KKK, until he learned they smoked pot. Because racism is cool and he has a zero rating with Human Rights watch, but no good people smoke pot. Wants to double down on the failed war on drugs, mandatory minimums, etc.
- And his White House adviser is famous for running a bombastic website (recall all the concern with fake news recently?) that he brags is the voice of the alt-right (code for white nationalists).

Add to that list the fact that a good percentage (all?) of his picks are loyalists, long time political insiders (drain the swamp!), and/or Wall Street "wolves." Fill up that swamp!

I heard Hoffa for Labor Secretary.

[Ibanez]

At least he's out of Oklahoma?

Trying to find a silver lining here......

[Conan71]

At least he's out of Oklahoma?

Trying to find a silver lining here......

If he could just make Crazy Mary and Mike Ritze go away now.

[patric]

If he could just make Crazy Mary and Mike Ritze go away now.

Im predicting an earthquake or twenty, and having to get used to the taste of Arkansas chicken poop in the water.
Think he will abandon suing Colorado for Being Another State or just pass the baton?


What if the President-elect nominates someone whose career has been dedicated to undermining the agency he has been chosen to lead, and opposing the laws he would be asked to enforce?

Effective and efficient environmental rules, however, have not been Pruitt's focus. Instead, he has made attacking environmental protection the cornerstone of his political career. Since becoming Oklahoma's attorney general five years ago, Pruitt has tried to stop national efforts to reduce soot and smog pollution that crosses interstate lines. He has sued EPA to stop limits on emissions of toxic mercury, arsenic, acid gases and other toxic pollutants from power plants. He has sought to block efforts to improve air quality in national parks and wilderness areas. Each time, he has failed, with courts dismissing his arguments and confirming EPA's legal and scientific views.

Pruitt characterizes these legal challenges as a righteous assault on overweening federal power. But their real impact would have been simply to allow the powerful to pollute without legal consequence — while doing real harm to American families. The common-sense efforts he sought block are cutting pollution, saving lives, preventing dangerous brain-development issues in children, reducing asthma attacks and increasing worker productivity.

Pruitt also doubts the established science of climate change. He has questioned "the degree and extent of global warming and its connection to the actions of mankind." That would make him perhaps the only national environmental chief in the world to hold that view. It is a position at odds with overwhelming scientific consensus, majority American opinion and the views of most leading corporations.

http://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/scott-pruitt-threat-article-1.2902332

[Conan71]

Im predicting an earthquake or twenty, and having to get used to the taste of Arkansas chicken poop in the water.
Think he will abandon suing Colorado for Being Another State or just pass the baton?


What if the President-elect nominates someone whose career has been dedicated to undermining the agency he has been chosen to lead, and opposing the laws he would be asked to enforce?

Effective and efficient environmental rules, however, have not been Pruitt's focus. Instead, he has made attacking environmental protection the cornerstone of his political career. Since becoming Oklahoma's attorney general five years ago, Pruitt has tried to stop national efforts to reduce soot and smog pollution that crosses interstate lines. He has sued EPA to stop limits on emissions of toxic mercury, arsenic, acid gases and other toxic pollutants from power plants. He has sought to block efforts to improve air quality in national parks and wilderness areas. Each time, he has failed, with courts dismissing his arguments and confirming EPA's legal and scientific views.

Pruitt characterizes these legal challenges as a righteous assault on overweening federal power. But their real impact would have been simply to allow the powerful to pollute without legal consequence — while doing real harm to American families. The common-sense efforts he sought block are cutting pollution, saving lives, preventing dangerous brain-development issues in children, reducing asthma attacks and increasing worker productivity.

Pruitt also doubts the established science of climate change. He has questioned "the degree and extent of global warming and its connection to the actions of mankind." That would make him perhaps the only national environmental chief in the world to hold that view. It is a position at odds with overwhelming scientific consensus, majority American opinion and the views of most leading corporations.

http://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/scott-pruitt-threat-article-1.2902332

I believe he was also instrumental in crafting the language for sh1tburger SQ-777.  Based on his record, I'm pretty certain he was all for that measure.

I'm still not entirely taken in by man-made global warming climate change climate phenomena.  Mostly because that has become an industry unto itself and it's been over-politicized.  I don't see the harm though in reducing emissions and being better stewards of the earth wherever practical and/or critical to do so.  

Appointing someone with common sense to run the EPA would be a great idea.  Appointing someone who is a flat-earther on anything environmental is very much a bad idea just as it would be a bad idea to appoint someone who only has draconian notions of regulation.  We got the flat-earther.

[RecycleMichael]

Scott Pruitt to head EPA is like asking a dingo to watch your baby.

[heironymouspasparagus]

All the people who voted for Trump are probably gonna be surprised that the won't get what they wanted or thought they were gonna get.   But they WILL get what they deserve.   Sadly, the rest of us will also be afflicted....

[Hoss]

Scott Pruitt to head EPA is like asking a dingo to watch your baby.

Great John Oliver reference.  He said that about the incoming FCC commissioner in 2014.

https://youtu.be/fpbOEoRrHyU?t=6m41s

The link takes you to the spot in the piece where the reference is made, but the whole segment is funny.  And some of it is NSFW.

[Hoss]

All the people who voted for Trump are probably gonna be surprised that the won't get what they wanted or thought they were gonna get.   But they WILL get what they deserve.   Sadly, the rest of us will also be afflicted....

Here are some of those 'surprised people'.  LOL.

https://trumpgrets.tumblr.com/

[heironymouspasparagus]

Here are some of those 'surprised people'.  LOL.

https://trumpgrets.tumblr.com/

Just the beginning.  When blue collar folk start to figure out what he is gonna do to them....


Mark Levin - LOL !!   Love it.  Right up there with Tomi Lahren for Biggest Loser.

[cannon_fodder]

This is going to come as a huge shocker, but THEY DONT CARE.  Trump is their team, that's it, nothing more.  Most of them don't care about his policies or what they mean.  Facts don't matter.  Hypocrisy doesn't matter.  That they know he said X to them and went down the street and said Y, doesn't matter.  If you're an OU supporter, Mixon just defended himself.  If you waive an orange flag on gameday, Mixon is a monster who shouldn't be allowed to play.  Go team!

So many won't even realize that he has gone from "drain the swamp" to filing DC up with Gold-Man-Sacks execs, political elites, and generals who were forced out after decades in Washington.  They have no clue what  Secretary is or does. They don't have any notion of what is "normal" for a cabinet post or that these people are usually imminently qualified, not patronage positions (that's why we have a ambassador to New Zealand, right?).

So you can grab a Trumpster by the toe and point out that he is stuffing the swamp to the brim. That he wants to trounce States under a stronger Federal government (already talking about removing states ability to regulate conceal carry, rolling back legalized marijuana, etc.). That he has already rewarded companies with socialists tax breaks while making fun of the union representing the workers. or that nearly every economist (as well as the GSA) indicates his economic policy proposed is a net loss for most Americans, but makes the top 5-10% boatloads of money.

Walk up to a Trumpster and show them these facts, it won't matter at all.  Team Trump 110% baby!

Like the caller to KRMG said on the radio this morning, "Scott Pruitt will do a much better job running the EPA than Al Gore did."  Reality doesn't matter...

[AquaMan]

We are among the leader states in exporting Idiocracy.